Hurricane Michael just wreaked havoc on the Florida Panhandle and the state of Georgia, and people are still trying to put their lives back together after the category 5 storm. The hurricane has been ranked as the third most powerful hurricane in American history because of the low atmospheric pressure exerted.

Once the storm was over, Florida and Georgia residents were surprised to see that the sky had turned purple, causing them to feel as if they were seeing some sort of miracle.

The phenomenon that results in this type of purple sky is called “scattering,” and it happens when particles and molecules that have been disturbed and are changing the way light travels either right before or right after a hurricane.

Steven Ackerman, professor of meteorology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, explained that the sky turns purple because of the extremely low atmospheric pressure.

“More atmosphere means more molecules to scatter the violet and blue light away from your eyes,” he said. “If the path is long enough, all of the blue and violet light scatters out of your line of sight. The other colors continue on their way to your eyes. This is why sunsets are often yellow, orange, and red.”

Spiritually, many people feel like the purple sky is the sky’s way of announcing that the storm is finally over, and that everything is going to be alright.

WOW. I’ve never seen such a purple sky before! This is in Lake City. Rain & wind starting to pick up here now. #Michael @FCN2go #FCNstorm @fcntim @_WeatherStove @WeatherLauren pic.twitter.com/YFld0O0nza

— Shelby Danielsen (@NewsShelby) October 10, 2018

It’s nice that after so much destruction from the storm, something beautiful can appear in the sky like this! Please keep all those affected by Hurricane Michael in your thoughts and prayers!