Mister Blue Sky please tell us why You had to hide away for so long (so long) Where did we go wrong?
– Lyrics from ‘Mr. Blue Sky’ (1977), by Electric Light Orchestra
The air quality for today (and expected for tomorrow), for the Puget Sound region, is pretty much the worst on record*. Winds from the north and from the east have carried vast plumes of smoke and PM2.5 particles from the raging wildfires in Canada and Eastern Washington, to the region.
*An air quality value of 218 is reported tonight in my neck of the woods, which is in the ‘Very Unhealthy’ category.
[Source: https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/enviwa] The Washington Air Quality Advisory (WAQA) value, is a scale that is a little stricter than the national Air Quality Index (AQI). A reading of 218 means stay indoors, keep windows & doors closed, and do only light indoor activities. Yikes. The air should start to clear by Wednesday night, say the weather people.From the Space Needle Cam. Top: August 19, 2017 was a clear blue sky day. The Mountain is out (Mt Rainier is faintly visible). Bottom: Today looked like a scene out of Mad Max Thunderdome or Blade Runner. The future has arrived, and it is ugly.
