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Western Wildfires Bring Haze To Maine's Skies

Matthew McFarland
/
Unified Fire Authority/ via AP
This photo provided by the Unified Fire Authority shows a Utah fire crew member on the scene working to protect the town of Butte Falls in southern Oregon on Sunday, Sept. 13. 2020.

Mainers might notice some haziness in the skies these days. Hunter Tubbs, of the National Weather Service in Gray, says that's due to the wildfires raging in the western U.S.

"People may notice a slight haze, or a murkiness to the sky during the daytime," Tubbs says. "And this is actually due to some of the smoke from the fires out West being brought into the Northeast and New England as a result of strong upper level winds through the Jet Stream."

Tubbs says the particles that are causing the haze aren't likely to have much of an effect on Maine's weather.

"The particles are actually a too small in order for them to impact radiational heating at night and also daytime heating," Tubbs says. "There might be a small effect, but overall it doesn't look like there will be much of an impact in our area."

Tubbs says the particles from the fires are high in the Jet Stream, so air quality here remains "good," but he says that will continue to be evaluated.