You've seen the harrowing images of West Coast skies this past week, as wildfires continue to rage across California, Oregon, and Washington. Now, the smoke that created that apocalyptic orange glow has moved across the country, though the air quality and appearance is nowhere near as drastic as in the Pacific states.
The National Weather Service office in Sterling, Virginia, confirmed that the "hazy appearance to the sky" in the Washington, D.C. area on Monday is a result of smoke from the western fires getting caught in the jet stream and floating swiftly toward the Atlantic.
Indeed, both NASA and AirNow — which monitors U.S. air quality — predict the smoke plume area will stretch far and wide this week. Tim O'Donnell
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Trump officials reinstating 2 Confederate monumentsSpeed Read The administration has plans to 'restore Confederate names and symbols' discarded in the wake of George Floyd's 2020 murder
-
'This is a coordinated campaign of harassment'Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Trump nominates Powell critic for vacant Fed seatspeed read Stephen Miran, the chair of Trump's Council of Economic Advisers and a fellow critic of Fed chair Jerome Powell, has been nominated to fill a seat on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors
-
Massive earthquake sends tsunami across PacificSpeed Read Hundreds of thousands of people in Japan and Hawaii were told to evacuate to higher ground
-
FEMA Urban Search and Rescue chief resignsSpeed Read Ken Pagurek has left the organization, citing 'chaos'
-
Wildfires destroy historic Grand Canyon lodgeSpeed Read Dozens of structures on the North Rim have succumbed to the Dragon Bravo Fire
-
Search for survivors continues after Texas floodsSpeed Read A total of 82 people are confirmed dead, including 28 children
-
EPA is reportedly killing Energy Star programspeed read The program for energy-efficient home appliances has saved consumers billions in energy costs since its 1992 launch
-
US proposes eroding species protectionsSpeed Read The Trump administration wants to change the definition of 'harm' in the Environmental Protection Act to allow habitat damage
-
Severe storms kill dozens across central USSpeed Read At least 40 people were killed over the weekend by tornadoes, wildfires and dust storms
-
Rain helps Los Angeles wildfires, risks mudslidesSpeed Read The weather provided relief for crews working to contain wildfires, though rain over a burn area ups the chances of flooding and mudslides
