Why Japan's Sky Turned Surreal

This purple tint appeared shortly before a massive typhoon slammed the country.

twitter door typhoon
  • As Typhoon Hagibis approached Japan on October 11, the country's skies took an odd purple tint.
  • Known as scattering, such coloring is common before a storm due to water droplets fracturing light.
  • After the color show, a very hard storm hit Japan.

    Typhoon Hagibis hit Japan hard this past weekend, with 35 inches of rain dropping in some areas leading to a death toll over 50, according to Japanese news service NHK. In the wake of the most powerful storm to hit Japan since 1958, the Japanese countryside has been plagued with over 140 dangerous landslides.

    As the storm approached Japan on October 11, several Twitter users were able to capture the surreal scene.

    Skies turning odd colors before storms is a well-observed phenomenon known as scattering. How does it work?

    "The familiar blue of the daytime sky is the result of the selective scattering of sunlight by air molecules," wrote Stephen F. Corfidi of NOAA in 2014, explaining why smog and pollution are not solely responsible for a sunset's colors. "Scattering is the scientific term used to describe the reflection or re-direction of light by small particles. Scattering by dust or by water droplets is responsible for the shafts of light that appear when the sun partly illuminates a smoky room or mist-laden forest."

    Hagibis brought Japan a tremendous and unwelcome amount of water, so it stands to reason that before it fell, it would scatter the rays of light into colors that look bizarre.

    Colors aside, the storm has presented Japan with difficult infrastructure challenges, according to NHK. While most rail service in the country has resumed, over 50,000 homes still lack electricity and more than 30,000 don't have running water. Evacuation orders remain in effect in large population centers like Nagano, and it's unclear when conditions will become safe enough for people to return to their homes.

    Source: Mothership

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