Coney Island's Pink Sunset Before the Storm

01Sunlight Takes a Longer Path

The colors of sunset begin with sunlight passing through air. When the sun is low, its light crosses more atmosphere before reaching an observer. Air molecules scatter shorter blue and violet wavelengths more strongly than longer red and orange wavelengths. This process is called Rayleigh scattering.

The longer path redirects more blue and violet light away from the observer. More red and orange light continues along that path, helping produce sunset's warm colors.

02Clouds Take On the Color

Clouds get their sunset colors from the light reaching them. Their water droplets and ice crystals scatter visible colors more evenly than air molecules do. When red or orange sunlight illuminates a cloud, the cloud can appear red or orange too, the Hong Kong Observatory explains.

Cloud height also affects timing. Higher clouds can remain sunlit after the sun has dropped below the horizon for someone on the ground. These processes explain sunset colors generally; they do not establish which clouds produced Coney Island's September 25 display.

03Warnings Ahead of the Storm

The storm warnings began before Friday's sunset. On September 24, Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani and NYC Emergency Management issued a travel advisory. It covered September 25 at 2 p.m. through the morning of September 27.

The city said the nor'easter's forecast track had shifted west, closer to New York. It cited expected rainfall of 2 to 3 inches and wind gusts of 40 to 50 mph. Those figures described expected conditions, not measured rainfall or wind speeds.

On September 25, Governor Kathy Hochul announced a state of emergency for eight counties: Bronx, Kings, Nassau, New York, Queens, Richmond, Suffolk and Westchester. The state warned of high winds, dangerous surf and possible flooding.