PHOTOS: What was up with the orange sky Tuesday night?

Minnesotans and Wisconsinites alike ventured outside Tuesday to gape at the unusual sky left behind after bouts of rain, high winds and even flooding in some areas.

Many are wondering what factors could cause the sky to turn orange or red instead of the typical blue, yellow or pink sunset.

5 EYEWITNESS NEWS Chief Meteorologist Ken Barlow explains the phenomenon below.

Barlow says the way Tuesday night’s hues were produced can be compared to “a prism back in school.”

“When the sun is at the right angle (low in the sky) the rays from the sun hit the rain droplets and/or ice crystals which make up the clouds,” Barlow writes. “The sun’s rays are bent and scattered into the colors we see.”

The amount of red and orange in the sky right now is cool and oddly ominous. pic.twitter.com/0jZ4g0mKTm

— Matt Serwe (@SerweWX) July 6, 2022

The National Weather service says this occurrence is all about timing.

Because of the direction of the light in the evening, the approaching sunset causing longer wavelengths, the high clouds left behind the thunderstorms, and put simply, timing. The timing of these types of skies are better in the evening than the morning.

— NWS Twin Cities (@NWSTwinCities) July 6, 2022

Did you take your own sherbet-soaked sunset snapshot? Have you taken a stance on whether the sky was tangerine, honey-gold or classic Creamsicle? Send us your photos at THIS LINK for the chance to be featured in the gallery below!

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