Pinatubo Skies

Many parts of the world experienced vividly colored sunsets for months following the June 1991 explosion of Mt. Pinatubo in the Philippines. This photo was taken in January 1992 in El Segundo, California, on the west coast of North America, approximately 7500 miles from the Philippines.

The unusually reddened sunsets that often follow volcanic eruptions are caused by particles suspended in the atmosphere. The Mt. Pinatubo eruption expelled 18 million metric tons of sulfur dioxide, creating an aerosol cloud that lingered in the upper atmosphere and influenced world climate for several years.

This photograph appeared on NASA/USRA's Earth Science Picture of the Day site on October 31, 2004.

Location: El Segundo, California.
Date: January, 1992.
Time: unrecorded.
Camera: Canon AE-1 35mm SLR on fixed tripod.
Film: Kodak Kodachrome 64 slide.
Focal length: 200 mm.
Aperture: unrecorded.
Exposure time: unrecorded.
Scanner: Nikon Coolscan LS-2000.