If you're in the Dakotas during the next few days and turn your eyes skyward, you'll see smoke from massive wildfires currently raging in Alaska.
The National Weather Service in Aberdeen says this is a rare occurrence created by wind patterns bringing the smoke southeast through Canada and over the Midwest.
The smoke, from one of Alaska's worst wildfire seasons on record, will look like high-flying clouds that aren't as white as normal clouds, according to NWS. The sky might even seem a bit hazier than normal.
The smoke could also reduce the temperature during the day by as much as five degrees, but keep it warmer at night, the weather service said. The conditions are expected to create vivid sunrises and sunsets.
Amy Liles, an NWS meteorologist in Aberdeen, said the smoke from the Alaskan fires should remain over the Dakotas for at least the next few days - if the current wind patterns remain and the blazes keep burning.
According to the Associated Press, weather conditions continued to hold down many wildfires in Alaska's Interior on Friday, despite thousands of lightning strikes that sparked almost a dozen new fires in one of the state's busiest fire seasons in five decades.
Eighty-six fires were burning throughout the state Friday, including 13 new fires reported Thursday. Eleven of the new fires were caused by lightning, fire officials said.
Altogether, fires in Alaska this summer have burned more than 3.2 million acres, making this the third-worst season on record, according to figures released Friday. The new numbers surpass the 1990 season by about 48,000 acres, officials said.
Ten of the fires currently burning account for nearly 2.9 million acres and an estimated $22.5 million in firefighting costs.
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