Smoke from California fires streams from coast to coast, making for stunning sunsets in parts of the East

The sunset in Washington, D.C. on Nov. 19. (Washington Post photo by Joe Flood)

Ask an art buff about Edvard Munch's The Scream, and they'll likely know the lurid sunset colors came from smoke in the air from the 1883 eruption of Mount Krakatoa. The same sort of thing is happening today, as plumes of smoke from California's wildfires have created stunning sunsets as far away as Boston. In some areas, like Washington, D.C., high pressure is forcing some of the smoke particles toward the ground, which has increased air pollution, Angela Fritz reports for The Washington Post.

It's a beautiful but sober reminder of what's happening out West. "Ten large wildfires are burning in California this week, the largest of which is the Camp Fire near Chico. As of Tuesday, that blaze had burned more than 151,000 acres and was 70 percent contained," Fritz reports. "At least 79 people have died in the fire, and hundreds are missing. Nearly 13,000 homes have been destroyed, mostly in Paradise and Magalia, since the fire started on Nov. 8."

Smoke plumes snaking across the U.S. (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration map)