Forest fires in Canada: Smoke reaches Europe – impact on sunsets

Reading. Smoke from large forest fires in Canada has reached Europe across the Atlantic. More clouds of smoke will hit the continent in the coming days, according to a report from the EU Earth observation program Copernicus in Reading, UK.

One possible consequence would be cloudier days and reddish-orange sunsets. However, no major impact on ground-level air quality is expected, as the smoke is mostly transported in higher layers of the atmosphere.

A first cloud of smoke crossed the Mediterranean region on May 18 and 19, and a second – much larger – cloud reached northwestern Europe in the last week of May. Copernicus relies on data from its atmospheric monitoring service (CAMS). The Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Ontario have reported significant emissions from forest fires in recent weeks.

According to Canada's National Forest Fire Report, there were well over 100 fires at one point. Exceptional dry conditions and windy conditions favored the outbreak and spread of the fires. Thousands of people were evacuated to safety as a precautionary measure.

According to Copernicus, large forest fires are also raging in southeastern Russia, beginning in April and primarily in the Republic of Buryatia and the Transbaikalia region east of Lake Baikal. CAMS analyses from mid-May showed that large plumes of smoke from the Transbaikalia region drifted toward China and northern Japan. Others reached the high Arctic.

According to Copernicus, such so-called pyrocumulonimbus clouds (PyroCb) form when a forest fire burns with exceptional heat and intensity, generating enough heat energy to drive smoke, ash and moisture high into the atmosphere, from where powerful jet streams can transport the smoke over long distances.

RND/dpa