The sky in South Dakota turned an eerie green during a severe storm

Before the bad weather swept over this region, on July 5, a terrible green sky appeared over Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

On Tuesday, when millions of residents were in the path of severe storms, in one of the states, in particular, rain and hail caused a colorful cocktail in the sky.

Storms passed through South Dakota on Tuesday afternoon, leaving behind reports of significant precipitation, hail and wind. The most unique part of the severe weather was its special shade: from the typical gloomy gray sky, it switched to a green shade, more characteristic of night vision goggles than daytime thunderstorms. This shade covered the center of South Dakota Sioux Falls throughout the late evening.

Explaining the sharp contrast of colors, AccuWeather meteorologist Isaac Longley points to a late afternoon fuel source for thunderstorms.

"Thunderstorms tend to occur later in the day due to the fact that solar energy during the day contributes to their occurrence," Longley said. "As we know, the sun looks redder at the end of the day as it approaches the horizon."

As soon as there is light under the high storm clouds, the combination of red sunlight and blue lights leads to the appearance of green colors filling the sky.

"The light under a high thundercloud appears blue due to scattering by water droplets," Longley says. "When the blue light is illuminated by the red light of the setting sun, it appears green, so some thunderstorms have a greenish tinge."

A video shot in Sioux Falls during strong winds, thunderstorms and hail captured the greenish color that many residents of the area saw.

More than 3 inches of rain fell on Sioux Falls within hours of the storm's onset Tuesday, and winds were also a matter of particular concern. The largest wind gusts recorded in South Dakota on Tuesday included a 96 mph gust in Huron, as well as strong gusts in Agar (91 mph), Rea Heights (87 mph/h) and Wall Lake (85 mph).

"Usually, the damage from strong thunderstorms is usually much more localized in certain areas, while this accumulation of thunderstorms can cause widespread damage over a much larger area," explained meteorologist La Troy Thornton.