And the view from the breakfast table was:
Then on Sunday afternoon we had this eerie view across the Auckland sky from our back yard as the ash and smoke from the Australian bush fires (2200 km to the west) trapped in the jetstream covered northern New Zealand.
All the street lights came on and the smoke and ash filtered out most of the blue light, creating this sepia look. I can think of only three ways to describe this:
- Like someone had put yellow cellophane over the sky
- Like being in the middle of a solar eclipse
- Like viewing some of the scenes from the Steven Sonderbergh films “Erin Brockovich” or “Traffic”
But we are fortunate, it was just one afternoon and evening for us whereas those living in the affected areas in Australia are living in a nightmare.
We had a few skies like that in Brisbane leading up to Christmas. It made for some very eerie sunsets and sunrises, and coated everything with a fine film of dust including most surfaces inside the house. Thankfully we’ve had clear skies since then, but it must be quite apocalyptic now in Sydney and Melbourne.
ReplyDeleteIt really was eerie. Someone at work today was relating the story that they went to the movies, to see the latest Star Wars. The went in when the skies were bright and came out to that strange orange hue, thinking “what the...”
DeleteWe were in Sydney early last month when the fires were not so severe. There was a bit of haze but it cleared over night. It must be unbearable now with no end in sight.
Having to suffer through the effects of regional forest fires on an almost annual frequency, your photos are no surprise.
ReplyDeleteIt is not unusual to see evidence of Australian bush fires - every few years the conditions are right to carry the smoke across the Tasman Sea, but usually it is just a dramatic sunrise or sunset. This is extraordinary because the smoke cloud extends nearly the whole way across the Tasman - some 2200 Kms. I saw an image today taken by a flight crew at 39,000 ft and all you can see to the horizon is orange smog.
DeleteExtraordinary situation, for sure.
DeleteAnd sad. Being in our back yard, so to speak, we see it every night on the TV news. The loss of animal life saddens me the most and some sub-species may even be eliminated.
DeleteYes Mark, it was very strange to be sure ....I likened it to looking through Polaroid sun glasses......it really did look like an apocalyptic event was about to occur.....which I suppose is why some dumb people called the police! (And by the way, if the world WAS about to end, what could the New Zealand Police be able to do about it anyway)
ReplyDeleteI can almost picture the officer receiving the call, “...end of the world, madam...don’t worry we will send PC Plod around...he’ll put it right...”
DeleteLike the line from Zulu when Schiess explains to two of the Welshmen of the 24th Foot that he is a member of the Natal Mounted Constabulary...."He is a peeler, 357, come to arrest the Zulu's"
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