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daniel swain in kxan nbc: ‘smoke cyclone:’ airborne ash from california fires creates disturbing satellite image
This GOES-16 GeoColor satellite image taken at 20:00 UTC (4 p.m. EDT) and provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), shows brown smoke from wildfires blowing westward in the atmosphere from California's Sierra Nevada to the Coast Ranges and from Oregon, top, on Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2020. (NOAA via AP)

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Daniel Swain in KXAN NBC: ‘Smoke cyclone:’ Airborne ash from California fires creates disturbing satellite image

For the better part of a month, fires from across the western United States have filled the skies with smoke and ash, creating unhealthy air conditions for millions of Americans.  Daniel Swain, a climate scientist, spotted a plume of ash on Wednesday reaching the mid-level of the atmosphere and swirling in a cyclone-like movement above California.  This is a meteorological feature he doesn’t think he’s seen before.