Here's Why the Blue Cut Fire Turned California Skies Red (PHOTOS)

Eric Chaney
Published: August 17,2016
Smoke from the Blue Cut fire raging in the hills above San Bernadino, California, is blotting out the sun and turning skies across the region shades of red, orange and gold.
The fire, which has burned more than 30,000, forced 82,000 residents to evacuate and prompted California Gov. Jerry Brown to declare a state of emergency, has put up massive plumes of smoke that can be seen in both Victorville to the north and San Bernadino to the south.
(MORE: California's Blue Cut Fire Burnes More Than 30,000 Acres; Over 82,000 Evacuated)
Resident in both San Bernadino and Victorville, along with Hesperia, Apple Valley, Lytle Creek, and Oak Hills, have snapped photos of the smoke golden red smoke creeping across blue skies, reducing the sun to dim speck of light, and finally, covering the entire sky in an eerie glow.
The glow is due to a phenomenon called Rayleigh scattering - named for British Scientist Lord Rayleigh - by which the smoke acts as a filter for some wavelengths of light coming through.
(MORE: Here's Why Smoke Turns Sunsets Red)
"The smoke particles scatter shorter wavelengths of light such as blue but leave the longer wavelengths of the light such as orange and red to pass through," said weather.com meteorologist Chris Dolce. "The effect is enhanced in the early morning and in the evening since the sun is at a lower angle in the sky."
MORE: Images From the Clayton and Blue Cut Fires