In short: Smoke particles from the fires allow sunlight's longer wavelength colors, like red and orange, to pass through ... sun is perceived as the color white by the human eye," Stutz said.

The eerie scenes of orange skies have ... Sunlight is made up of white light, which contains all of the colors of the rainbow. The interference of the smoke alters how we see it.

If smoke is dense enough, all the visible light hitting it is absorbed, so it appears very dark. Steam, on the other hand, is an excellent reflector of light, so its plumes appear white.

As Canadian wildfires poured smoke plumes over the United States this week, East Coasters found themselves captivated and concerned by the unnatural orange hue that took over the skies.

Distant buildings that you would otherwise be able to see on a clear day are blotted out by the murky haze.But why is it orange – and not white, gray or some other color?Wildfire smoke turns the ...

New York could be cloaked with a second wave of thick orange smoke Thursday, as hundreds of out-of-control wildfires ravage parts of Canada. The smog may make a return Thursday into Friday in ...

The region is about to get a real summer hors d’oeuvre, complete with an air-quality alert courtesy of Canadian wildfire ...