FROM TODAY'S PRINT EDITIONS:
Carol Uhler-Ford, in Pikesville, noted during last week’s rainless heat and humidity that “from around noon to maybe 2 o’clock or so, enough haze gathers to block the sun … but always gives way by 4 p.m. Help me understand this phenomenon.” My guess? It was probably a photo-chemical haze. Sulfur dioxide gas from combustion reacts in sunlight, humidity and stagnant air to form sulfuric acid droplets, which create the haze. As afternoon sunlight weakens and winds rise, the haze clears.
(PHOTO: National Park Service webcam)