Nearly 2 million U.S. acres on fire; effects widespread

Time-lapse map of wildfires and smoke this summer
(National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration images compiled into a GIF by The Washington Post)

Smoke from wildfires in the western and southern U.S. and western Canada has blanketed a large percentage of both countries, Christopher Ingraham reports for The Washington Post. 

Weather observers at the Mount Washington Observatory in New Hampshire even reported seeing the smoke, Adres Picon reports for The Boston Globe.

The smoky state of things may not improve in years to come: experts say wildfires are burning longer and spreading faster since at least 2005, Jake Whittenberg reports for KING-TV in Seattle. Those increased fires coincide with increased temperatures fueled by climate change, Seth Borenstein reports for The Associated Press.