The last Big Sky pictures Bettina took was two days ago. The Carpenter 1 wildfire burning in the Spring Mountains had already consumed 9000 acres and mandatory evacuations took place for residents living in that area. The fire made the skies that night quite dramatic and Bettina was able to capture some awesome moments of the smoke rising and helping to form a huge Pyrocumulus cloud but by yesterday it had grown to 14,000 acres and making our skies in the Valley too hazy for any real good photo taking. That haze has had another unwanted effect - that of making the air quality dangerous for people with respiratory problems. This morning storm clouds rolled in to the Valley and we've heard the sound of thunder for the first time in months. Hopefully the rain made its way to the fire zone. I managed to get some nice shots of this morning's sky as well and the following pictures are a combination of mine and Bettina's. Enjoy!
