How the Dragon Bravo Fire created its own weather

The massive wildfire burning near the Grand Canyon has been so intense at times that it created its own weather. The Dragon Bravo Fire -- which has scorched more than 130,000 acres in Arizona north of the Grand Canyon -- has become so hot that it spurred pyrocumulus clouds, or "fire clouds" at points. The fire-driven clouds can form when the heat and smoke from a very large wildfire is released into the atmosphere, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration . Pyrocumulus clouds are similar to the cumulus clouds that can been seen on a fair-weather day; however, instead of rising due to heat from the sun-warmed ground, the air is lifted by intense heat from a fire, causing it to cool and condense water vapor, forming a new cloud. The formation of pyrocumulus clouds and