Chicago Weather

Why is the sky orange or yellow in Chicago area? NBC 5 meteorologist explains

According to NBC 5 Storm Team Meteorologist Kevin Jeanes, there have been reports of an orange or yellow sky after the initial round of rain and thunderstorms in some portions of the area

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Kevin Jeanes has the latest as potentially severe storms eye the Chicago area ahead of possible snow.

A strong storm system is again impacting the middle of the country, and Chicago is caught in the middle of it.

Parts of northern Illinois are under a tornado watch through Wednesday evening, and some areas have already had a few downpours with small hail. Now, dust is also entering the picture.

According to NBC 5 Storm Team Meteorologist Kevin Jeanes, there have been reports of an orange or yellow sky after the initial round of rain and thunderstorms in some portions of the area.

The reason?

"This storm system has kicked up dust behind a cold front," Jeanes said. "We may experience slightly poorer air quality this afternoon, but it won’t last long."

The satellite image below shows the dust moving in.

The main threat for strong storms is expected to last only a few hours, but after the storms move out, strong winds and possibly even snow move in.

"We’ll also have very strong northwest winds later tonight as rain changes to snow, which will be more than enough to clear the air of dust and improve air quality," Jeanes said. "Some positive news."

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