x
Breaking News
More () »

Wildfire smoke masquerades as cloud cover in western New York

On its Facebook page, the National Weather Service asked, "Can you tell the difference between smoke from wildfires and cirrus clouds?"
Photo: National Weather Service

Notice the sun looking a little more vibrant orange on Saturday? See those wispy cirrus cloud high in the sky?

Turns out, those weren't clouds at all and the sun looked a little brighter because of the presence of wildfire smoke in the area, according to the National Weather Service in Buffalo.

On a nearly cloudless day in the area, meteorologist Tom Hamilton said wildfire smoke, which came from forest fires near the Ontario/Manitoba border in Canada, there was the appearance of clouds because of the long-traveling smoke.

"Ontario has seen more than 1,000 forest fires so far this year, compared to 561 in all of 2017," according to report from CTV News.

On its Facebook page, the National Weather Service asked, "Can you tell the difference between smoke from wildfires and cirrus clouds? They look similar on visible satellite and that is why meteorologists use other satellite channels such as Infrared to tell the difference."

Hamilton said to make sure to keep an eye on the sunset as it will appear redder than usual. He said the smoke is probably 10,000 to 12,000 feet high in the atmosphere.

He said this occurrence is a pretty regular one, especially when conditions are dry. "You get this every summer," Hamilton said. "It's interesting, but it's not uncommon. A lot of people don't notice it, because they don't understand what they're seeing."

The smoke was probably responsible for driving temperatures a bit lower than predicted, Hamilton said. "We've probably already had this a few times this summer," he said. "Maybe not as dense a layer, but it's not real uncommon. More interesting that anything else."

WCLEVELAND@Gannett.com

Before You Leave, Check This Out