While the aftermath of Hurricane Michael have been nothing short of devastating, the affected people must begin to piece together their lives.
Many homes and businesses have been completely demolished thanks to the nearly Category 5 storm that moved through the Florida Panhandle and up through Georgia.
The dreadful storm has been ranked as the third most powerful hurricane in U.S. history, due to the low atmospheric pressure exerted.
But just because the storm was a true travesty, it doesn't mean that there wasn't at least one small thing that made the affected residents smile.
After the storm was over, an almost magical purple color emanated from the sky. The clouds and the sky behind them were all tinted in a vivid purple, leaving the residents feeling as though they were witnessing some kind of miracle.
The phenomenon responsible for these purple skies is called "scattering" and it is caused by particles and molecules that have been disturbed and are changing the way light travels either right before or right after a hurricane.
The remarkable footage obtained by residents shows that the sky is more purple than your usual sunset, and meteorology professor of the University of Wisconsin said it's because of that extremely low atmospheric pressure.
"More atmosphere means more molecules to scatter the violet and blue light away from your eyes," he explained. "If the path is long enough, all of the blue and violet light scatters out of your line of sight. The other colors continue on their way to your eyes. This is why sunsets are often yellow, orange, and red."
WOW. I've never seen such a purple sky before! This is in Lake City. Rain & wind starting to pick up here now. #Michael @FCN2go #FCNstorm @fcntim @_WeatherStove @WeatherLauren pic.twitter.com/YFld0O0nza
— Shelby Danielsen (@NewsShelby) October 10, 2018
So with the pressure dropping so low, we were actually able to see the violet rays as they pass through the scattered particles.
On a more spiritual level, many people feel as though it's the skies announcing that the storm is finally passing on, and leaving behind this announcement so the residents know that it's going to be okay.
It's kind of like those other stories of messages from the sky, like the angel in the clouds or when someone thought they could see God walking above them. While it's nice to think that it may be the universe trying to apologize, at least we know the real scientific cause of the purple skies.
Even in places not directly hit by the hurricane, the purple skies carried over, bringing a bit of the beauty to the rest of the state.
Source - Interesting Engineering / CNET
