Persistent weather pattern + wildfires = Air impact and more heat ahead

From the striking red sunsets of late to why your allergies might be irritated — point to the growing wildfires in the West.

“This has been going on for many years, but typically we’ll get into the heart of the wildfire season in late summer, early fall,” said Todd Heitkamp, meteorologist in charge at the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls.

“But with the many areas out west and even in the Northern Plains not getting the snowfall we normally get, that’s allowed conditions to dry out.”

Wind and haze

Haze from smoke generated by the wildfires has been hanging in the air since late June, but you might not have noticed it during the day.

At sunrise and sunset, however, the reddish appearance of the sun “brought a lot of attention to the smoke in the atmosphere,” Heitkamp said.

“It just disperses the light a little more, giving it a more reddish tint more apparent in the atmosphere it has to go through, like a burning appearance.”

Another reason you notice the haze then: the wind.

“For sunrise and sunset, the winds aren’t usually as strong as during the day,” Heitkamp said. “Therefore, it allows the haze and smoke particles to congregate.”

The wind also has a lot to do with how much haze is in the air.

“What the weather pattern will do is determine where the smoke goes, and that’s why we’re seeing so much,” Heitkamp said. “There’s a ridge of high pressure over the western U.S., which instigates a lot of the fires, and that will cause the smoke to pass up through the Canadian Rockies and down over us on the Northern Plains and over on the East Coast.”

That’s why New York City and other places on the East Coast began reporting reddish sunsets in the past week — the smoke has now made its way across the country.

Air quality issues

At one point recently, the “air quality in northern Minnesota down to the Twin Cities was probably the poorest in the country,” Heitkamp said.

“It can impact people dramatically.”

If you have asthma, allergies or other respiratory preexisting conditions, “you’re going to notice the haze and smoke a lot sooner,” he added.

“In those cases, people with breathing issues are encouraged to take precautions and protect themselves from that air quality.”

That’s in addition to seasonal allergy triggers that already affect people, including pollen and particles related to harvest that get spread by wind.

“You get airborne particles that irritate your eyes or breathing, and when you throw smoke on top of it … people need to take note and don’t exercise outside if you have asthma or take precautions to better suit you with your health conditions at that point in time.”

What’s ahead

As long as fires continue in the West and even in Canada, weather patterns will continue to drive smoke to this area, Heitkamp said.

“We’ll be dealing with smoke in summer and fall depending on the weather patterns,” he said.

And speaking of the weather pattern, get ready for more heat.

“We’re going into the ‘dog days of summer.’ It’s going to get hotter,” Heitkamp said. “We’ll be in the upper 90s. … We’ll deal with this dry weather pattern for the next couple weeks.”