Brilliantly colored sunsets and prolonged twilights were noted all over the world after the August 1883 eruption of Krakatau, Indonesia, as the result of the global spread of aerosols from the eruption throughout the stratosphere. These displays were recognised as distinct from the familiar red sunsets seen though London's smoke-laden atmosphere and were the subject of considerable contemporary discussion. Artist William Ascroft drew a series of explicit renderings of Krakatau sunsets as he saw them from the banks of the Thames on November 26, months after the eruption. This slide is one of several paintings made while the sun set. Although the sunset effects were obvious, the effects on global temperature were more subtle, perhaps about 1 degree C in the northern hemisphere. Similar effects were seen worldwide after the June 1991 eruption of Mt. Pinatubo, Philippines.

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