WATCH: Scary, beautiful time lapse of western wildfires

Tuesday, March 22, 2016, 9:43 AM - A good chunk of North America burns every summer, scorched by wildfires.

If you live far away from the risk zone, you might get a more orange sunset from the extra smoke particles in the air, but if you live closer, like Western Canada and the U.S., the the fires can look apocalyptic.

Photographer Jeff Frost, who shot the video below, spent a few years chasing wildfires in California, which is in the midst of a multi-year drought. 

Thanks to CalFire, Frost got "unprecedented access" to the frontlines (at one point, he shadows an emergency vehicle through what looks like a burning hellscape). The resulting time lapse is frighteningly beautiful:

Frost told National Geographic he has documented about 25 wildfires. The "Fire Chasers: California on Fire" project will eventually include a documentary, art film, and book.

"As each year gets hotter and fire season in the state continues to expand, I have become increasingly concerned about our continued existence on this planet," Frost told the magazine. "I wanted to show what we are up against right now, let alone down the road when global warming intensifies heat and drought which will further exacerbate wildfires."

Some 3.6 hectares of land have burned in the western U.S., costing billions of dollars to fight.

In Canada, around 1.6 million hectares of land burned over the course of 2015, according to data from the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre. The wildfires forced more than 13,000 people from their homes, most in northern Saskatchewan, and required troop deployments.

Alberta, which saw almost half a million hectares burn, is already taking precautions for 2016, including starting its wildfire season on March 1, a month earlier than usual, with Saskatchewan also making preparations for an early start if necessary.

SOURCES: National Geographic | Jeff Frost | CIFFC