NEBRASKAland Magazine is dedicated to outstanding photography and informative writing with an engaging mix of articles and photos highlighting Nebraska’s outdoor activities, parklands, wildlife, history and people.
Issue link: https://mag.outdoornebraska.gov/i/1542285
62 Nebraskaland • December 2025 MIXED BAG COLORFUL WINTER SKIES By Grace Gaard, Outdoor Education Specialist If you've stepped out into a cold winter evening just as the sun is dipping behind the horizon, you may have found your breath catching at the sight of the colors in the sky — hazy purples and blues along the edges of the landscape, fiery pink and red beams arcing across the clouds. The vibrancy of these winter sunsets isn't your imagination. Science can explain this fiery phenomenon. The Why Behind the Colors in the Sky We all know that the sun shares its warmth and light with us throughout the year. Each ray of that light contains all the colors of the rainbow within it. As these rays of sunlight travel through the Earth's atmosphere, they come into contact with various molecules — such as nitrogen, oxygen and other particles — in the air. These "collisions" cause the light rays to ricochet in unique ways depending on their colors and wavelengths. This is called Rayleigh scattering, and the wavelength essentially determines how far the color needs to go for us humans to be able to see it. This is why not all colors will reach the ground in the same concentrations. When blue and violet light come into contact with the Earth's atmosphere, their light scatters more readily in all directions above us, leading to lower concentrations of blue and violet light reaching Earth. This is why our sky looks blue and the Earth appears sheltered by a blue dome from certain angles. When the sun is setting, our planet is rotating away from the sun, meaning light must travel even farther to reach our eyes. Coming into contact with more molecules in the atmosphere leaves blue and violet light scattering away from our eyes, while colors like red, orange, pink and gold steal the show. Ingredients for a Colorful Winter Sunset Nebraska's outstanding winter skies are created by a few key elements: the weather, Nebraska's location in the Midwest and the angle of the Earth. The weather in Nebraska can be unpredictable, but as we head into December, the consistency of those cooler temperatures evens out. By January, the air is dry and cold. This lower humidity, combined with less dust and pollen particles compared to warmer days, produces a crisp sky with minimal barriers for light and color to pass through. We have pretty clean air in the Midwest. When a polar vortex comes through, icy, clean air makes its way southward. That clear atmosphere means that light has fewer barriers, and more colors will reach our eyes. Finally, the angle at which the sun sets is different in the winter, especially near the winter solstice. During this time of year, the Earth's Northern Hemisphere is tilted away from the sun. Though winter nights come sooner and last longer, this tilt of the Earth results in the rays of the sun stretching out across the sky longer. Essentially, the setting of the sun lingers, which adds to drawn-out sunsets. One last feature that makes these sunsets even better: clouds. With the right blend of temperature gradients and cloudy systems moving off to our west, these winter skies can become the perfect tapestry of texture and light, a colorful display that sends us into the dark night with the warmth of those colors in mind. See for Yourself A little research into when the sun sets in your location, humidity levels and cloud cover can indicate if the conditions will be just right for a colorful winter sky. However, if research doesn't appeal, who doesn't love walking out to the surprise of a saturated sky as they leave work or the grocery store? On these long, dark nights, find solace in the sky. Though the weather is cold and the days are short, the gift of a winter sunset can carry us through. A sunset where the Oglala Grasslands meet the Pine Ridge. JUSTIN HAAG, NEBRASKALAND