Jakarta – The viral natural phenomenon of red sky in Pandeglang shocked the local community a few days ago. It turns out that this natural phenomenon is an atmospheric optical phenomenon or Rayleigh scattering. For information, the natural phenomenon of red sky in the southern Pandeglang region took place on Thursday evening (18/12). A number of residents captured this rare moment and posted it on social media. Not a few of them were confused by this incident. Quoted by detikcom, Sunday (21/12/2025), from the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics entitled Rayleigh scattering in the atmosphere of hot stars written by J Fišák et al (2016). Rayleigh scattering is a special type of scattering process. PAGE TO CONTINUE CONTENT According to Loudon (1983), the scattering process by bound electrons is divided into three cases: fluorescence, Raman scattering and Rayleigh scattering. In the case of Rayleigh scattering, an ion is excited by a photon and transitions to a virtual state. This state is very unstable and the electrons immediately go back to their original state. Meanwhile, according to John William Strutt, also known as Lord Rayleigh, Rayleigh scattering is the effect that causes the blue color of the sky and the red color of the sunset. Meanwhile, the scattering centers are oxygen and nitrogen molecules because they have the greatest abundance in the Earth’s atmosphere. Rayleigh scattering is also an important source of opacity in the atmospheres of other planets. Rayleigh scattering by H2 has been detected in the atmosphere of the exoplanet and it is thought that Rayleigh scattering is responsible for the blue color of the exoplanet. Rayleigh scattering is an important source of opacity in stars due to its large population of neutral hydrogen atoms. BMKG explanation, head of the Center for Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Region II Banten, Hartanto, said the incident was a natural or ordinary event. He explained that this happened due to the refraction of sunlight when it was in a low position or before sunset. According to him, sunlight must travel a greater distance through the earth’s atmosphere to reach the eye. “Only colors with long waves such as red and orange are therefore able to penetrate the atmosphere and be caught by our eyes,” said Hartanto. Hartanto continued that the appearance of the red color that adorned the sky was influenced by the high concentration of water vapor or the presence of aerosol particles (dust/pollution) floating in the air. According to him, the Pandeglang area is currently experiencing rain which amplifies the effect of the red reflection on the surrounding clouds. “The red colour, which appears very dark, is usually influenced by the high concentration of water vapour, or the presence of aerosol particles in the air,” he said. Hartanto appealed to the public to remain calm and not be provoked by wild speculation. He asked to continue to monitor information on weather developments. “The public is advised to remain calm and we urge the public to continue to monitor official weather information,” he said. The cause of the red sky Hartanto said that the appearance of the red color that adorns the sky is influenced by the high concentration of water vapor or the presence of aerosol particles (dust/pollution) floating in the air. According to him, the Pandeglang area is currently experiencing rain which amplifies the effect of the red reflection on the surrounding clouds. “The red colour, which appears very dark, is usually influenced by the high concentration of water vapour, or the presence of aerosol particles in the air,” he said. Hartanto appealed to the public to remain calm and not be provoked by wild speculation. He asked to continue to monitor information on weather developments. “The public is advised to remain calm and we urge the public to continue to monitor official weather information,” he said. Not a sign of disaster. The BMKG provided an explanation about the rare phenomenon of red sky in Pandeglang. BMKG said this phenomenon has nothing to do with signs of possible natural disasters. “This incident does not indicate that a natural disaster will occur,” said Head of the Center for Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Region II Banten, Hartanto, Friday (19/12/2025). See also video: The sky burns red due to the largest volcanic eruption in the world (yld/imk)