Wildfire Smoke

The area where I live has been inundated with smoke from wildfires. This has also happened during previous summers. Even after rain clears out the smoke down low, it is still visible high in the atmosphere.

While driving at night I can tell that deer are alarmed and confused by the smoke.

The moon is visible through the smoke but not stars. This is how to tell smoke from clouds, as neither the moon or stars will be visible through clouds.

The smoke leads to heavy rain for two reasons. First, the smoke blocks the sun. This causes the temperature to drop and the air cannot hold as much water vapor. Second, the particles of smoke provide condensation nuclei for water to condense on and then they fall as raindrops.

The lower daytime temperatures brought about by the smoke is reminiscent of the change in the global climate for several years following the two great volcanic eruptions of the Nineteenth Century. These eruptions were Tambora in 1815 and Krakatoa in 1883.

Here is a link to the posting about those volcanoes.

https://markmeeksideas.blogspot.com/2025/05/volcanic-weather-effects.html?m=0