Amazing how long we went without complaining about the weather in 2020

[Labster]

We've had something like snow fall in California, except the fresh powder is gray and made of ash.  The expected Santa Ana event didn't materialize -- the inversion layer is too strong for a weaker-than-expected pressure gradient to push through.  So all of the smoke is just blowing over the top of us.

In San Francisco, the sky has been oranger than the Golden Gate Bridge.  Here too, the inversion is keeping the smoke aloft and the air breathable at the surface. Here's a quick picture of life on Mars (gallery here).  It was taken at 10 AM.