What conditions does Fire Sky look for?

Golden Hour: Any. Fiery Red Sky Potential: ≥ 65.0%. Precipitation Chance: ≤ 15.0%. Visibility: ≥ 8000.0m

How often do conditions match?

There are 1 upcoming opportunity windows in the next 10 days.

More Fire Sky in Hawaii

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Rule Fire Sky

Haleakala - Fire Sky - Hawaii

Makawao, Hawaii, United States

Those rare, intensely red and orange sunset skies

Currently

Real-time conditions

Fiery Red Sky Potential

Low Cloud Cover50%

Mid Cloud Cover0%

High Cloud Cover43%

Aerosol Optical Depth0.1

Sun Elevation-23.0° (Astronomical night)

Upcoming Opportunities

When all conditions match, PhotoWeather marks an opportunity window.

Times shown in Pacific/Honolulu

Next opportunity

Excellent Fiery Red Sky at Sunrise

Haleakala

Wed, Jul 15 · 06:00–06:23 · 1h window

Low confidence

38%

🔥Fiery Red Sky Potential74.5%

Low Cloud Cover: 18%

Mid Cloud Cover: 0%

High Cloud Cover: 64%

Sun Elevation: 1.1° (Golden hour)

What this forecast looks for

Plain-language explanation from the rule

This forecast tracks the spectacular sunset conditions that transform Hawaii's tropical skies into blazing displays. We combine cloud coverage patterns, volcanic haze levels, and atmospheric clarity to predict when Hawaiian sunsets will ignite with dramatic color.

Hawaii offers some of the Pacific's most dramatic fire-sky conditions, particularly when volcanic haze (vog) from Kilauea adds atmospheric particulates that scatter light into intense oranges and reds. The tropical location means the sun sets quickly at a steep angle, creating brief but intense color displays.

What makes Hawaii special for fire-sky photography:

Volcanic haze advantage - Vog from Kilauea volcano scatters light into intense sunset colors
Maui and Big Island drama - Leeward coasts receive the most dramatic vog-enhanced sunsets
Tropical intensity - Quick sunset at steep angle creates brief but fierce color
Ocean reflections - Calm leeward waters mirror fire skies perfectly

The Big Island's Kona coast offers Hawaii's most reliable fire-sky conditions, particularly when vog from Kilauea volcano drifts southwest. The volcanic particulates scatter light dramatically, creating sunsets of unusual intensity. Maui's western coast benefits from similar conditions when vog crosses the channel. The steep volcanic slopes provide dramatic foreground silhouettes—palm trees and volcanic peaks profiled against blazing skies. During periods of volcanic activity, vog levels increase and sunset colors become even more intense. The leeward (western/southern) coasts of islands offer the calmest water for reflections. Trade winds typically die down at sunset, creating mirror-like ocean surfaces that double the impact. Tropical sunsets happen quickly—the entire show from first color to darkness takes about 30 minutes, with peak color lasting only 5-10 minutes. Scout locations beforehand and be ready before the sun touches the horizon.

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72-hour requirements breakdown

What passed or failed, hour by hour

0matching hours in the next 80 hours

AND logic: all conditions required

Meets requirement

Misses requirement

Time Pacific/Honolulu	Golden Hour Any	Fiery Red Sky Potential ≥ 65.0%	Precipitation Chance ≤ 15.0%	Visibility ≥ 8000.0m
Tue, Jul 7
18:00	✓	14%	45%	10675m
19:00	✓	52%	50%	24134m
20:00	✕	27%	56%	24135m
21:00	✕	31%	55%	24134m
22:00	✕	21%	27%	12788m
23:00	✕	26%	0%	3796m
Wed, Jul 8
24:00	✕	28%	13%	10668m
01:00	✕	15%	26%	8518m
02:00	✕	30%	39%	1200m
03:00	✕	27%	26%	24134m
04:00	✕	24%	13%	15653m
05:00	✓	29%	0%	4296m
06:00	✓	51%	13%	24135m
07:00	✕	19%	26%	24135m
08:00	✕	17%	39%	24134m
09:00	✕	17%	39%	24134m
10:00	✕	15%	39%	9590m
11:00	✕	18%	39%	8391m
12:00	✕	14%	59%	8976m
13:00	✕	12%	79%	24134m
14:00	✕	28%	98%	24135m
15:00	✕	28%	84%	8684m
16:00	✕	24%	70%	8852m
17:00	✕	18%	56%	9352m
18:00	✓	16%	61%	703m
19:00	✓	35%	66%	8309m
20:00	✕	17%	72%	641m
21:00	✕	16%	66%	8305m
22:00	✕	17%	61%	556m
23:00	✕	17%	56%	10050m
Thu, Jul 9
24:00	✕	17%	59%	11837m
01:00	✕	16%	61%	4154m
02:00	✕	16%	64%	951m
03:00	✕	15%	56%	750m
04:00	✕	17%	47%	10183m
05:00	✓	18%	39%	11912m
06:00	✓	33%	53%	13424m
07:00	✕	27%	67%	11507m
08:00	✕	24%	82%	24135m
09:00	✕	29%	82%	24134m
10:00	✕	26%	82%	9338m
11:00	✕	25%	82%	8880m
12:00	✕	25%	86%	8611m
13:00	✕	20%	90%	8878m
14:00	✕	20%	95%	8979m
15:00	✕	25%	90%	9970m
16:00	✕	22%	86%	24135m
17:00	✕	17%	82%	24134m
18:00	✓	26%	86%	11701m
19:00	✓	42%	89%	9447m
20:00	✕	28%	93%	461m
21:00	✕	28%	83%	466m
22:00	✕	31%	73%	677m
23:00	✕	29%	64%	8269m
Fri, Jul 10
24:00	✕	27%	70%	8254m
01:00	✕	26%	77%	8246m
02:00	✕	21%	83%	8245m
03:00	✕	14%	83%	8251m
04:00	✕	16%	82%	8248m
05:00	✓	20%	82%	1307m
06:00	✓	24%	85%	8741m
07:00	✕	22%	89%	8277m
08:00	✕	20%	93%	9069m
09:00	✕	0%	80%	11413m
10:00	✕	0%	68%	13757m
11:00	✕	0%	56%	16101m
12:00	✕	0%	65%	18184m
13:00	✕	0%	73%	20267m
14:00	✕	0%	82%	22350m
15:00	✕	0%	73%	21329m
16:00	✕	0%	65%	20308m
17:00	✕	0%	56%	19288m
18:00	✓	0%	68%	20342m
19:00	✓	1.6%	80%	21396m
20:00	✕	0%	93%	22450m
21:00	✕	0%	75%	18889m
22:00	✕	0%	57%	15328m
23:00	✕	0%	39%	11767m
Sat, Jul 11
24:00	✕	0%	45%	10855m
01:00	✕	0%	50%	9943m

How to read: colored cells show whether each predicate requirement is met; highlighted rows mean the full rule matched (an opportunity).

What does Fiery Red Sky Potential mean?

Inputs that drive the score

This derived score summarizes multiple raw weather signals. The table below shows the supporting inputs hour by hour, so you can see what's pushing the score up or down.

Time Pacific/Honolulu	Aerosol Optical Depth (550nm)	Clear Sky Probability (Ensemble) %	Cloud Cover Uncertainty (Ensemble) %	Dust AOD (550nm)	Golden Hour	High Clouds %	Low Clouds %	Mid-Level Clouds %	RH @ 700 hPa %	Smoke AOD (550nm)	Solar Elevation °	Sunshine Duration seconds
Wed, Jul 8 Sunrise 05:50 Sunset 19:10
04:00 ☾	0.09	55%	22%	0.001	-	43%	50%	0%	20%	0.003	-23°	0seconds
05:00 ☾	0.09	67%	23%	0.001	-	20%	56%	0%	21%	0.003	-11°	0seconds
06:00	0.09	71%	22%	0.001	-	60%	52%	0%	21%	0.003	1.6°	0seconds
07:00	0.09	75%	20%	0.001	-	16%	54%	0%	21%	0.003	14°	0seconds
08:00	0.08	79%	19%	0.001	-	3%	59%	0%	20%	0.003	28°	0seconds
09:00	0.07	79%	18%	0.001	-	5%	54%	0%	19%	0.003	41°	3600seconds
10:00	0.07	79%	17%	0.001	-	5%	56%	0%	18%	0.003	55°	3600seconds
11:00	0.07	79%	16%	0.001	-	4%	70%	0%	17%	0.004	69°	3600seconds
12:00	0.07	77%	17%	0.001	-	5%	41%	0%	16%	0.004	83°	3600seconds
13:00	0.07	75%	17%	0.002	-	5%	21%	0%	16%	0.004	83°	3600seconds
14:00 ☾	0.07	73%	18%	0.001	-	66%	11%	0%	16%	0.004	69°	3600seconds
15:00 ☾	0.06	62%	20%	0.001	-	82%	12%	0%	16%	0.004	55°	3600seconds
16:00 ☾	0.06	50%	22%	0.001	-	84%	17%	0%	15%	0.004	42°	3600seconds
17:00 ☾	0.06	39%	24%	0.001	-	18%	42%	0%	15%	0.004	28°	3600seconds
18:00 ☾	0.06	38%	23%	0.001	-	34%	67%	0%	23%	0.004	15°	3600seconds
19:00 ☾	0.06	36%	23%	0.001	-	10%	65%	0%	30%	0.004	1.7°	3600seconds
20:00 ☾	0.06	35%	22%	0.001	-	5%	60%	0%	38%	0.004	-11°	3600seconds
21:00 ☾	0.07	44%	25%	0.001	-	5%	61%	0%	43%	0.004	-23°	0seconds
22:00 ☾	0.08	52%	29%	0.001	-	0%	64%	0%	48%	0.004	-33°	0seconds
23:00 ☾	0.08	61%	32%	0.002	-	5%	58%	0%	53%	0.005	-41°	0seconds
Thu, Jul 9 Sunrise 05:50 Sunset 19:10
24:00 ☾	0.08	60%	31%	0.002	-	10%	60%	0%	60%	0.005	-46°	0seconds
01:00 ☾	0.08	60%	30%	0.002	-	5%	55%	0%	67%	0.006	-46°	0seconds
02:00 ☾	0.08	59%	29%	0.002	-	5%	57%	0%	73%	0.006	-42°	0seconds
03:00 ☾	0.09	58%	29%	0.002	-	5%	59%	0%	73%	0.006	-33°	0seconds
04:00 ☾	0.09	57%	29%	0.002	-	5%	52%	0%	73%	0.005	-23°	0seconds
05:00 ☾	0.09	56%	29%	0.002	-	5%	53%	0%	72%	0.005	-11°	0seconds
06:00	0.09	50%	29%	0.001	-	14%	46%	0%	67%	0.005	1.5°	0seconds
07:00	0.08	43%	28%	0.001	-	81%	46%	0%	62%	0.004	14°	0seconds
08:00	0.08	37%	28%	0.001	-	100%	50%	0%	57%	0.004	28°	0seconds
09:00	0.07	31%	29%	0.001	-	100%	6%	0%	50%	0.004	41°	3600seconds
10:00	0.08	24%	30%	0.001	-	100%	9%	0%	44%	0.004	55°	3600seconds
11:00	0.08	18%	31%	0.001	-	100%	12%	0%	37%	0.004	69°	3600seconds
12:00	0.09	17%	30%	0.001	-	100%	22%	0%	33%	0.004	83°	3600seconds
13:00	0.09	15%	29%	0.001	-	100%	26%	0%	28%	0.004	83°	3600seconds
14:00 ☾	0.09	14%	28%	0.001	-	100%	48%	0%	24%	0.004	69°	3600seconds
15:00 ☾	-	10%	25%	-	-	75%	52%	0%	25%	-	55°	3600seconds
16:00 ☾	-	7%	23%	-	-	5%	63%	0%	26%	-	42°	3600seconds
17:00 ☾	-	3%	20%	-	-	6%	65%	0%	27%	-	28°	3600seconds
18:00 ☾	-	3%	19%	-	-	5%	65%	0%	30%	-	15°	3600seconds
19:00 ☾	-	2%	19%	-	-	95%	73%	0%	33%	-	1.7°	3600seconds
20:00 ☾	-	2%	18%	-	-	100%	73%	0%	36%	-	-11°	3600seconds
21:00 ☾	-	5%	21%	-	-	98%	60%	0%	34%	-	-23°	0seconds
22:00 ☾	-	7%	24%	-	-	100%	57%	0%	32%	-	-33°	0seconds
23:00 ☾	-	10%	27%	-	-	73%	62%	0%	31%	-	-42°	0seconds
Fri, Jul 10 Sunrise 05:51 Sunset 19:10
24:00 ☾	-	9%	26%	-	-	98%	67%	0%	38%	-	-46°	0seconds
01:00 ☾	-	7%	24%	-	-	99%	68%	0%	46%	-	-46°	0seconds
02:00 ☾	-	6%	23%	-	-	100%	62%	0%	54%	-	-42°	0seconds
03:00 ☾	-	8%	24%	-	-	87%	63%	0%	62%	-	-34°	0seconds
04:00 ☾	-	9%	26%	-	-	89%	63%	0%	71%	-	-23°	0seconds
05:00 ☾	-	11%	27%	-	-	94%	60%	0%	80%	-	-11°	0seconds
06:00	-	9%	26%	-	-	44%	71%	0%	82%	-	1.4°	0seconds
07:00	-	7%	24%	-	-	67%	58%	0%	84%	-	14°	0seconds
08:00	-	5%	23%	-	-	19%	56%	0%	86%	-	28°	0seconds
09:00	-	5%	22%	-	-	44%	44%	0%	87%	-	41°	1200seconds
10:00	-	4%	22%	-	-	69%	32%	0%	87%	-	55°	2400seconds
11:00	-	4%	21%	-	-	94%	20%	0%	88%	-	69°	3600seconds
12:00	-	4%	21%	-	-	95%	23%	0%	87%	-	83°	3600seconds
13:00	-	3%	20%	-	-	96%	26%	0%	86%	-	83°	3600seconds
14:00 ☾	-	3%	20%	-	-	97%	28%	0%	85%	-	69°	3600seconds
15:00 ☾	-	2%	19%	-	-	92%	32%	1%	82%	-	55°	2400seconds
16:00 ☾	-	2%	18%	-	-	88%	37%	1%	79%	-	42°	1200seconds
17:00 ☾	-	1%	17%	-	-	83%	41%	2%	77%	-	28°	0seconds
18:00 ☾	-	1%	17%	-	-	89%	52%	1%	78%	-	15°	0seconds
19:00 ☾	-	1%	17%	-	-	94%	63%	1%	80%	-	1.7°	0seconds
20:00 ☾	-	1%	17%	-	-	100%	74%	0%	81%	-	-11°	0seconds
21:00 ☾	-	4%	20%	-	-	76%	79%	0%	79%	-	-23°	0seconds
22:00 ☾	-	6%	23%	-	-	53%	84%	0%	78%	-	-33°	0seconds
23:00 ☾	-	9%	26%	-	-	29%	90%	0%	77%	-	-42°	0seconds
Sat, Jul 11 Sunrise 05:51 Sunset 19:09
24:00 ☾	-	8%	25%	-	-	51%	86%	0%	77%	-	-46°	0seconds
01:00 ☾	-	7%	24%	-	-	73%	82%	0%	76%	-	-46°	0seconds
02:00 ☾	-	6%	23%	-	-	95%	78%	1%	76%	-	-42°	0seconds
03:00 ☾	-	7%	25%	-	-	97%	63%	2%	73%	-	-34°	1200seconds

How to read: these inputs help produce the derived score; they are not requirements by themselves.

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