Orange Skies Day

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2020 San Francisco Orange Skies Day
North Complex smoke in San Francisco - Financial District.jpg
Smoke from the North Complex Fire mixed with fog to create an orange hue in the sky
DateSeptember 9, 2020 (2020-09-09)
LocationBay Area, California, United States
CauseSmoke from the North Complex Fire

Orange Skies Day was a climatological event that occurred in the San Francisco Bay Area on September 9, 2020.[1][2] The orange-colored hue in the sky was the result of smoke from the North Complex Fire (including the Bear Fire) and more than 20 other wildfires, which burned more than 2 million acres east of the San Francisco Bay Area.[3] This smoke scattered blue light wavelengths, which only allowed warmer colors to reach the Earth's surface.[4]

Because the sun failed to appear in the morning, light-sensitive bridge and street lights remained alight the entire day, and drivers were recommended to keep their headlights on all day.[5] Daniel Swain, a UCLA climate scientist, wrote that the smoke was "almost completely blocking out the sun across some portions of Northern California."[6] In a tweet, the San Francisco Fire Department stated, "We know the smoke, darkness and orange glow is scary. It is going to get better."[7]

Public officials blamed the event on climate change.[8] California Governor Gavin Newsom stated, "I quite literally have no patience for climate change deniers. It's completely inconsistent, that point of view, with the reality on the ground."[9] In popular culture, the day was compared to the films Blade Runner 2049 and Dune.[10][11]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Hartlaub, Peter. "The orange skies have faded. But Orange Skies Day is forever". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  2. ^ Rexroat, Kelsey. "The Day the San Francisco Sky Turned Orange". New Yorker. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  3. ^ Fuller, Thomas. "Wildfires Blot Out Sun in the Bay Area". New York Times. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  4. ^ "Remembering the day smoke-choked skies cast an eerie dark orange glow over Bay Area". CBS News. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  5. ^ Paul, Kari. "'Good morning, hell': Californians awake to apocalyptic skies as wildfires rage". The Guardian. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  6. ^ "Surreal orange skies as wildfire smoke blocks sun in Bay Area". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  7. ^ "California wildfires cast 'scary' orange glow over San Francisco". DW. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  8. ^ Jain, Sanya. "Barack Obama Shares Pics Of Orange Skies Amid West Coast Fires". NDTV. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  9. ^ "Ominous orange sky gives San Francisco apocalyptic tint". Times of India. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  10. ^ Robinson, Joanna. "Under San Francisco's Orange Skies, Adjusting to an Unnerving New Normal". Vanity Fair. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  11. ^ Holder, Sara. "The Day the Sky Turned Orange". Bloomberg. City Labs. Retrieved March 24, 2023.

Further reading[edit]

  • Pyne, Stephen J. California: A Fire Survey (2016) online
  • Safford, Hugh D., et al. "Fire ecology of the North American Mediterranean-climate zone." in Fire ecology and management: Past, present, and future of US forested ecosystems (2021): 337-392. re California and its neighbors online

External links[edit]

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