Cold Front and Wild Fires Cause São Paulo to Go Dark during The Day

Darkness washed over São Paulo on Monday, around 3 pm, surprising residents. The phenomenon can be explained by the sum of the arrival of a cold front in the east of the state, with heavy clouds, and winds that have brought particulate matter originating from fires in Paraguay and Bolivia.

Franco Nadal Villela, a meteorologist of Inmet (National Institute of Meteorology), explained what happened in São Paulo on Monday:

"The darkening of the sky was quite intense. Two things working together caused it. First, the cold front from the east of São Paulo, bringing in a lot of moisture from the ocean. This cold front is bringing in cold air." said Villela, who then spoke about the effect of the fires. "There are wild fires of great magnitude happening in Paraguay, in the Pantanal region. Since the weekend, strong winds have brought (fine dust) from Mato Grosso do Sul, reaching São Paulo. The (fine dust) helps in the formation of clouds, and when they form together with it, the sky gets even darker, "he added. He said fires in the Bolivian region also contributed to the dark sky.

Adapted from: https://www1.folha.uol.com.br/internacional/e n/scienceandhealth/2019/08/cold-front-andwild-fires-cause-sao-paulo-to-go-dark-duringthe-day.shtml

In to the Text, “Darkness washed over São Paulo on Monday, around 3 pm” means that the phenomenon occurred: