# sky turns orange when snowing/raining

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sky-turns-orange-when-snowing-raining/154395>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [February 11, 2003, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sky-turns-orange-when-snowing-raining/154395 "2003-02-11T18:21:10Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![hocow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hocow/32/4112_2.png) [@hocow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hocow)\
**Post date:** [February 11, 2003, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sky-turns-orange-when-snowing-raining/154395/1 "2003-02-11T18:21:10Z")

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hi guys! living in PA i see my share of snow. what i have noticed is that when it snows (or rains but not as noticable) at night the sky takes on an orange color. can anyone explain why this happens? i’ve wondered about it since i was a kid…lol thanks 🙂

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**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\
**Post date:** [February 11, 2003, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sky-turns-orange-when-snowing-raining/154395/2 "2003-02-11T18:29:03Z")

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It’s probably the glow of sodium-vapor lamps from nearby towns or cities. You don’t see that effect deep in the sticks, only in suburban or urban environments.