Have you noticed the haze in the sky today? Maybe you thought it was just another cloudy day, but the haze is actually caused by smoke from wildfires in Canada.
You can tell the difference between a cloudy and smoky day by looking at the sun. When smoke obscures the sky, the sun will take on an orange/pink color because the smoke scattered the sunlight differently. The photo above was taken this morning showing the evidence of smoke in the air.
This map (above) from AirNow, an EPA initiative, shows where fires are burning and how the smoke is spreading from Canada into the United States.
Over the next couple days more of this smoke will flow in, so concentrations will likely be the highest Friday morning. The upper-level wind pattern should change enough this weekend to lower those concentrations, but the sky may still look hazy through at least Saturday.
It's important to note this smoke is concentrated in the air above us, not at ground level. The air quality is still Moderate in our area; we normally don't alert you about the air quality until it's the next category higher (orange - unhealthy for sensitive groups).
