Is there a service that will tell me if it's going to be a nice sunset?

November 8, 2014 5:02 PM

Or failing a service, is there a way to tell, ahead of time, whether or not a given sunset will likely be a colourful one? I have the perfect spot already, about 650' about sea level, and all of the camera equipment I'm going to get. What I need to know is what to look for in the weather conditions that will make a difference. Which type of clouds will be the most fortuitous, are there particular weather patterns that will help, etc?
posted by Solomon to Science & Nature (6 answers total)

Colorful sunsets (and sunrises) result from particulate matter in the air. Particulate matter tends to build up under high pressure systems, where the air near the ground tends to stagnate. However, you probably also want some clouds to add drama to the sunset. That complicates matters, since high pressure tends to be associated with clear skies. The ideal situation is likely to be a day that has been sunny with light winds due to high pressure overhead, then patchy cloudiness is approaching from the west toward sunset (assuming you are in mid-latitudes in the northern hemisphere). You would have to look at weather maps or satellite photos for your area to see when that situation is setting up. The old proverb is "Red sky at morning, sailors take warning. Red sky at night, sailor's delight." The basis of the proverb is that if the sky is red at sunrise, the high pressure is off to your east and moving away, so bad weather may be approaching from the west. If the red sky is at sunset, the high pressure is to your west so you will likely have fair weather for a while as it moves overhead.
posted by jkent at 5:32 PM on November 8, 2014

Completely personal experience, but here in southern California, the crappier the air quality, the more gorgeous the sunset.
posted by cecic at 5:55 PM on November 8, 2014 [1 favorite]

As jkent says, a lot of it has to do with particulate matter in the air. Proximate volcanos can make for great sunsets, as can a generally dusty climate. When I traveled in southern Africa, all of the sunsets were gorgeous -- perhaps because of the amount of dust kicked up from the relatively dry climate. In Kuai the sunsets over the ocean were pretty but not as memorable. In Big Sur fog tended to roll in about 30 minutes before the sun went down so I never managed to actually see the sun set.

If you can tell us where your chosen spot is, people might be able to say more.
posted by alms at 7:16 PM on November 8, 2014

Completely personal experience, but here in southern California, the crappier the air quality, the more gorgeous the sunset.

Especially (unfortunately) during fire season.
posted by Room 641-A at 7:56 PM on November 8, 2014

Response by poster: I'm in Worcestershire, in the UK. Lat/long is roughly 52.254523, -2.266838.
posted by Solomon at 2:13 AM on November 9, 2014

One thing you could do is follow your government's Air Quality Forecasts and watch for days when pollution is forecast to be moderate (or worse) in your region. These forecasts are not based solely on particulate matter, but at this time of year in the UK that is likely to be the primary pollutant, and there should be some correlation between higher levels of pollution and colorful sunsets. As alms said, volcanoes can also make for colorful sunsets, and in that case it may not show up in the air quality forecast, as it may be up high in the atmosphere. If volcanic ash was headed your way from Iceland, you would probably hear about it, as it's a threat to aviation.

I forecast daily air quality in the U.S. as part of my job, but I've never really tried predicting colorful sunsets.
posted by jkent at 3:14 AM on November 9, 2014