wild weather

i know, a post about weather?  but seriously, the greater sydney area has been providing some crazy events in recent months.

the bush fires have started well before the normal fire hazard season usually becomes worrisome.  recall the fires that swept through siding spring observatory in january (the middle of summer).   but this spring, the big fires started west of sydney!

on the day the big fires began, i could see this huge red smoke cloud moving quickly east over the city.

surreal smoke cloud over sydney

i checked the radar and those thin diagonal features are not storm clouds, they are smoke clouds being blown right over central sydney!

the thickest smoke cloud kept flowing east and this formation flew past near the edge.

the resulting sunset that night was as spectacular as it was eerie.  i have not digitally manipulated any of these photos!

pink and purple sunset through bushfire smoke clouds

a few days later, the fires were still burning in the west and we woke up every morning to air that smelled like fire smoke and a hazy sky.   the sun reflect a striking red off the waters near manly beach.

red sun through bushfire smoke

the fires raged for a couple weeks, destroying hundreds of homes along the path.   then almost two weeks ago, rains have covered the area.   over the past week and a half, the rains have fallen powerfully, causing water damage and flooding and bringing strong winds.   in fact, this week, water spouts were spotted off the new south wales coast.  water spouts, australia?!?!

Water Spouts near Port Macquarie (Photo Credit: link)

this is not normal weather, y'all.