Canadian Wildfire Smoke - Red sunrises in the Northeast

Many in the Northeast woke up to a bright red sun. The culprit? Wildfire smoke coming in from Canada.

Wildfires have been raging across the western half of the country and Canada this summer, and some of the smoke has made its way into the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.

While wildfire smoke can lower air quality, it can also create vibrant sunrises and sunsets, as seen this morning in Cape Cod, Mass., and Rochester, N.Y. Smoke particles scatter sunlight, particularly shorter blue wavelengths, allowing more red and orange hues to dominate during sunrises and sunsets. This scattering effect intensifies the vibrant colors, creating deep red and orange skies.

Residents of New York, Philadelphia and Baltimore will once again see hazy skies today, and the smoke will linger into the weekend. The wildfire smoke is riding in on northwest winds and has traveled hundreds of miles. Keep up with this wind on our WindRadar.