What Makes a Great Sunset

Did you know we can predict a particularly beautiful sunset/sunrise? It's easier than you might think and something you can teach your friends and family! Here are the ingredients you need:

1) Clouds

Yep - that's it! There's more you need to consider, but the basic requirements are pretty simple. While you can have a pretty sunrise or sunset without clouds, the most interesting and vivid ones usually have some cloud features in the sky. It helps if those clouds are in the middle or upper levels of the atmosphere, which have more ice in them.

The clouds need to be clearing west to east over our area as the sun is setting (moving in west to east for a sunrise). While that may sound like a simple thing, it's not. The timing and placement of the clouds and the clearing/moving in are the wild card in sunset/sunrise forecasting.

You also need to factor in what types of clouds you are working with. Higher clouds will usually create prettier sunsets because they are catching the sun's rays higher in the atmosphere. The light gets muted by pollutants closer to the surface of the Earth, so lower clouds don't usually create quite as vivid colors in a sunset. Higher clouds are also made of more ice and less liquid water; as the light passes through ice; it scatters a bit differently than through liquid and produces these colors.

Other particles in the air, like dust and smoke, can also scatter light differently making for beautiful colors in the sunset. We love to see your photos when the sky puts on a show! You can send those to us on social media, and you may see them on TV later.