You’ve heard about the disastrous bushfires that have engulfed Australia for the past three months. Are you ready to experience them?

Smoke from the fires is making its way around the world, NASA reported last week.

It’s actually worse than it sounds. The fires are causing a large number of “pyrocumulonimbus (pyrCbs) events,” which the U.S. space agency describes as “essentially fire-induced thunderstorms.”

NASA adds:

“PyroCb events provide a pathway for smoke to reach the stratosphere more than 10 miles (16 km) in altitude. Once in the stratosphere, the smoke can travel thousands of miles from its source, affecting atmospheric conditions globally."

A fleet of NASA satellites 🛰️ working together has been analyzing the aerosols and smoke from the massive fires burning in Australia.https://t.co/93geNvCBnU pic.twitter.com/ZedZ199lvJ — NASA Goddard (@NASAGoddard) January 9, 2020

Colin Seftor, a staff scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, says satellite data shows that “some of the Australian pyroCb events have rivaled the largest values ever recorded.”

The smoke has already moved halfway around the globe, making South America hazier than usual and “causing colorful sunrises.” It will eventually make a complete circuit of the Southern Hemisphere, returning to Australia.

The bushfire smoke that arrives in countries far from its source will be unwelcome, but it won’t be nearly as bad as it is in Australia, where the fires have killed at least 25 people and likely millions of wild animals.

Tennis players attempting to qualify for next week’s Australian Open, the sport’s first major tournament of the year, are dealing with brutal conditions in Melbourne. One player, Slovenia’s Dalila Jakupovic, suffered breathing problems from the swirling smoke and ultimately retired from her match on Tuesday.

Former Wimbledon finalist Eugenie Bouchard made it through her qualifying match the same day but insisted “it was tough to breathe.” She said “there should be an air-quality rule” that keeps players off the court in poor conditions.

UPDATE: The original headline on this story was misleading and has been changed.

-- Douglas Perry

@douglasmperry

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