Smoke from the fires covered the entire West Coast last week before spreading out over the Pacific Ocean. This week the smoke has traveled thousands of miles east, turning skies hazy from New York to Washington, D.C., and reaching as far as Britain reut.rs/2EgaARK 1/7
.@Reuters shows how organic carbon is released into the atmosphere during the fires. The smoke contains a substantial portion of fine particulate matter known by the particles’ size as PM2.5, which can have a major impact on people’s health 2/7
The wildfires – burning across a record total of some 4.8 million acres (1.9 million hectares) as of Thursday – have destroyed towns in Oregon while also devouring forests in California, Washington and Idaho 3/7
Smoke from the fires has also pushed the limits vertically, reaching altitudes previously unseen, according to @NASA. When extreme fires generate enough heat, the warmer air is propelled into the atmosphere creating thunderstorms 4/7
Another tall plume of smoke, possibly a huge storm cloud - known as pyrocumulonimbus - was also captured in satellite imagery on Sept. 9. This one was east of San Francisco 5/7
The warm updrafts can pull in so much air lower down that strong winds develop at the ground level, fanning the fire even further so it burns hotter and spreads farther. On rare occasions, these strong surface winds can swirl into a dangerous fire tornado 6/7
With climate change expected to exacerbate fires in the future, by worsening droughts and warming surface ocean temperatures, wildfire research is becoming especially important. Read the full story from @ReutersGraphics: reut.rs/2EgaARK 7/7
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