Rayleigh Scattering: Blood red colour sky engulfs Indonesia

Jakarta : The sky over an Indonesia region turned blood red due to severe pollution conditions which came with widespread forest fires.

Some 900,000 Indonesians have suffered respiratory problems caused by extensive forest fires this summer, which are believed to have been started by illegal burning to clear land for farming.

A toxic haze has blanketed parts of Borneo and Sumatra in the past few months, according to the local authorities, and has triggered diplomatic tensions as it spreads to regional neighbours, including Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines.

The sun rays scattered into blood red colour, prompting the residents to start worrying about it and share their concerns on the social media.

According to a news paper, the phenomenon is known as “Rayleigh Scattering” and is caused by the movement of haze away from hot spots.

"Rayleigh Scattering happens when sunlight is dispersed by smoke, dust or airborne particles that filter shorter wavelengths and release longer wavelengths that are in the orange or red spectrum, making the area appear to be dim and red," Marufin Sudibyo, an Indonesian astronomer, told the Malay daily, Sinar Harian.