Australian bushfire smoke has made it's way to New Zealand as snowy white glaciers are turned to brown slush.

Icy white glaciers on New Zealand’s South Island have turned a concerning shade of caramel as a result of the bushfires burning in New South Wales and Victoria.

Shocking photographs and videos shared on social media over the past 48 hours show the impact of the drifting smoke on some of the country’s magnificent and usually pristine attractions.

“We can actually smell the burning here in Christchurch,” a user by the name of Miss Roho said on Twitter overnight.

She shared a video of the thick smoke up on the Tasman Glacier in Mount Cook National Park, 200 kilometres west of the South Island city.

This the view from the top of the Tasman Glacier NZ today - whole South island experiencing bushfire clouds. We can actually smell the burning here in Christchurch. Thinking of you guys. 😢#nswbushfire #AustralianFires #AustraliaBurning pic.twitter.com/iCzOGkou4o — Miss Roho (@MissRoho) January 1, 2020

Another woman, Rachel, posted photos of the “caramelised snow” near the iconic Franz Josef Glacier on January 1.

“It was white yesterday,” she wrote.

RELATED: Aussie bushfires turn NZ glaciers pink

In satellite notes issued on Thursday morning, the Bureau of Meteorology said “extensive smoke haze” has been seen across eastern NSW and Victoria “and extends both northwards to Queensland and also extends from the north Central Coast of NSW across the Tasman Sea”.

The stream of haze is associated with a surface trough and cold front, the Bureau said.

Extensive bushfire smoke from #EastGippsland and southeastern #NSW has travelled over the #TasmanSea and is now affecting the south island of #NewZealand. Latest at https://t.co/JzdVx3m1rH pic.twitter.com/DASVmBCjzh — Bureau of Meteorology, Australia (@BOM_au) January 1, 2020

Not quite a butterfly effect, but...

these are the aerosol levels measured by #Sentinel5P 🇪🇺🛰 over #NewZealand as a consequence of the Australian #bushfirecrisis pic.twitter.com/5GU9nEOwls — Copernicus EMS (@CopernicusEMS) January 1, 2020

It’s not the first time Australia’s weather has left its mark on the glaciers in recent weeks.

In a blog post on her Young Adventuress website, Liz Carlson described the surreal sight of glaciers in the Mount Aspiring National Park in New Zealand’s Southern Alps coated “in a layer of red” dust.

“It’s not uncommon to have this occur during periods of severe drought in eastern Australia,” University of Queensland geographer Hamish McGowan told the ABC.

This time, the skies above New Zealand have turned shades of yellow, orange, grey and brown.

The impact has been widespread and felt in Dunedin, Oamaru and Kurow on the South Island, and Wellington and Auckland on the North Island.

Kiwi actor and comedian Jemaine Clement, of Flight of the Conchords fame, said on Twitter the Australian bushfire smoke in the country’s atmosphere had given them a “strange sun”.

All the way over in NZ the Australian bushfire smoke in the atmosphere giving us this strange sun. pic.twitter.com/KLQ7H4hBIC — Jemaine Clement (@AJemaineClement) January 1, 2020

Former New Zealand prime minister Helen Clark shared an image of the smoke from New Zealand’s Weather Watch this morning.

“The main plume lies over the North Island for Thursday. A secondary plume is covering a few parts of the South Island,” the weather news authority stated.

Ms Clark said: “How one country’s tragedy has spillover effects.”

#Smoke from #Australia is thinning out further today as it now moves over the North Island of #NewZealand (combined with cloud too).



The main plume lies over the North Island for Thursday. A secondary weaker plume is covering a few parts of the South Island.



10:50am NZDT Jan 2: pic.twitter.com/LiUayB0qM2 — WeatherWatch.co.nz (@WeatherWatchNZ) January 1, 2020

“Crazy down here, the camera does not do it justice,” dairy farmer Bruce Eade captioned his video of the thick smoke over the south of New Zealand.

Reid Parker, sharing a photo of the smoke above Dunedin on New Year’s Day, said: “If it’s like this when there’s an ocean between us, the reality in Aus must be terrifying”.



The smoke from the bushfires in Australia has arrived here in the south of NZ. Crazy dark down here,the camera does not do it justice pic.twitter.com/lT7syB82ly — 🚜🐄 Bruce 🐄🚜 (@fairleigh_ag) December 31, 2019

This was Dunedin, NZ at around 10.30 this morning. Photos don’t do it justice, the light was orange with smoke from the Australian bushfires.

If it’s like this when there’s an ocean and a few thousand km between us, the reality in Aus must be terrifying. pic.twitter.com/fiZKJmU3h1 — Reid Parker (@ReidParker_) January 1, 2020

Red sun blushes over Auckland 8.10am Jan 2 2020 as smoke from Australia bushfires drifts over New Zealand pic.twitter.com/ocGg4z3eff — Fortune Cookie (@Sub_Strata) January 1, 2020

Matthew Newton, a @the_chronicle_ Journo who isn’t on Twitter, is in Queenstown, NZ this morning which is blanked with thick smoke from Australia’s bushfires. The second is what the view is supposed to look like (from a slightly higher spot). pic.twitter.com/fR2aeBqI2u — Tobi Loftus (@tobiloftus) December 31, 2019

The sun above Wellington NZ right now. Mix of cloud and smoke from the Aussie bushfires #AustralianFires #NSWfires #vicfires pic.twitter.com/T2B8jSv6LO — Bob Buckham (@bobsyauncle) January 1, 2020

Happy New Year. Orange sky this morning in Dunedin. Caused by smoke from Australian bushfires. pic.twitter.com/a6L27lkKfQ — Benedikt Holtmann (@BeneHoltmann) December 31, 2019

Market Day in Kurow NZ and smoke from Australian bushfires. pic.twitter.com/sCsB3H0OMP — Lynda (@Lynda31245384) January 1, 2020

Follow our live coverage of the Australian bushfires here.