As Tonga and surrounding Pacific island communities feel the impact of the weekend's volcanic eruption, impacts from the explosion have reached Queensland, creating dazzling light displays.
Many Queenslanders captured unusual sunrises this morning, caused by light reflecting through the huge Ash Cloud currently floating above the state.
Related Articles
"The light gets scattered through all those fine particles of ash and when we look at the sunrise and sunset, we see those brilliant different colours we've been seeing," Steve Hadley, a senior broadcaster with the Bureau of Meteorology said.
READ MORE: Tonga eruption 'up there with Krakatoa'
The Sunshine Coast and north to Cook Town will see their skylines change due to the ash Cloud.
"In fact, anywhere across western Queensland I think by the end of the day, there will be some ash very high in the sky over those areas, so potentially a good sunset across most of the state," Mr Hadley said.
"It's possible we could actually see some effects in the sunrises and sunsets in the next few weeks as that ash cloud gradually dissipates and circles the globe."
READ MORE: Tonga calls for 'immediate assistance' after volcano, tsunami
https://twitter.com/BOM_Qld/status/1482833945578323972
The underwater eruption from Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha'apai, off Tonga's coast, sent ash and smoke 40,000 feet into the air, triggering tsunami-like wave warnings off Australia's east coast this weekend.
While ashy skies have affected flight schedules across Queensland, meteorologist Ben Domensino from Weatherzone said there is no reason for concern and that the ash has not affected air quality.
"A cloud of volcanic ash and gas can be seen passing over Queensland today, giving the sky and red tinge," Mr Domensino said.
"The ash cloud is travelling more than 40,000 feet (around 12km) above sea level, which means it's too high up in the atmosphere to directly impact people on the ground in Queensland.
"The ash cloud did, however, cause a fiery volcanic sunset this morning and is affecting some flight operations over the state."
