Blood red skies over Indonesia caused by out-of-control, man-made forest fires

The annual fires, set by farmers and corporations trying to clear land during the dry months, even though the practice is illegal, engulf large parts of the county and its neighbors in a toxic, smoky haze, which can irritate eyes and cause respiratory illnesses.

The nation's Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency explained that the red skies phenomenon is caused by a process known as Mie scattering, according to CNN, which occurs when the sun's rays are scattered by tiny particles of air pollution.

The fires have burned as much as 800,000 acres of rich peatland and forests across Indonesia in the past eight months, the BBC reported, forcing thousands of people from their homes. The government has deployed as many as 9,000 firefighters in an effort to get the blazes under control.