"If the moon’s face is red, of water she speaks."
This is a very accurate Zuni Indian saying. The red colour is due to the
presence of dust being pushed ahead of a low pressure front bringing in moisture.
Red sky at night, sailors delight
Red sky at morning, sailors take warning.
Or
Evening red and morning grey,
sends the traveler on his way.
Evening grey, morning red,
brings the rain down on his head.
A red sky at either dusk or dawn is one of the more spectacular and beautiful
weather predictors we have in nature. By closely observing this phenomenon, you can achieve short-range accuracy of the weather
as good as, or better than your local weatherman.
At dusk, a red sky indicates that dry weather is on the way. This is
due to the sun shining through dust particles being pushed ahead of a high-pressure system bringing in dry air. A red sky
in the morning is due to the sun again shining through dust. In this case however, the dust is being pushed on out by an approaching
low- pressure system bringing in moisture. Don’t confuse a red sky in the morning with a red sun in the morning. If
the sun itself is red and the sky is a normal colour, the day will be fair. A red sun at dusk or dawn indicates dry weather.
"A rainbow in the morning, is the shepherd’s warning.
A rainbow at night is the shepherd’s delight."
Rainbows play an essential part in weather predictions. A
rainbow is an obvious indicator of rain as it refracts the light and breaks it down into colours. Rainbows in the morning
to the west usually indicate approaching rain. But a rainbow at sunset usually means the rain is about to depart and fair
weather is on the way.
Here are some odds and ends to keep an eye on:
When you hear the first cicada of the summer, expect the first frost of
the year in exactly 90 days.
The last Sunday of the month predicts the weather for the next month.
Ice in November to bear a duck, the rest of the winter will be slush and
muck.
If fog forms on water in the fall or spring, a frost is on the way.
Spiders will spin thicker, bigger webs in when the weather is going to
be dry.
A foggy morning with dew on the grass indicates a clear day.
Crickets chirping loudly indicate a pleasant day to follow.
A clear, white moon tells you that the next day will be nice.
Cumulonimbus clouds forming rapidly in the mountains on warm afternoons
presage an intense lightening storm is on its way in minutes.
Cobwebs on the grass
are a sign of fair weather.
ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE
As the air pressure around you rises or falls, many changes
in nature occur. Most of these are obvious others are subtler. If you find yourself in a marsh or swamp and the air really
seems to stink more than normal, expect rainy weather. This happens when the pressure drops and the methane trapped on the
bottom of the swamp is released in greater quantities. In reverse, as fair weather approaches and the pressure rises, things
won’t smell quite so strong.
Mountains and other faraway objects will appear to be much closer and more
sharply focused as wet weather approaches and the air pressure drops. The dust particles in the air begin to settle to the
ground and the air clears allowing you to see more details of faraway objects. As a high-pressure front approaches and the
air becomes thicker, more dust particles become suspended in air and things take on their normal somewhat hazy appearance.
Sound too becomes sharper and more focused prior to stormy weather. Instead
of traveling upward and outward into the atmosphere sound waves are bent back to the earth and their range extended. Even
birdcalls sound sharper.Remember a grandparent talking about how their
corn, bunions or joints ached right before a rain? Again, this is due to the decreasing atmospheric pressure allowing the
gas in our bodies to expand.
Birds and bats have a tendency to fly much lower to the ground right before
a rain due to the "thinning" of the air. They prefer to fly where the air is the densest and they can get greater lift with
their wings. With high pressure and dry air, the atmosphere becomes denser and they can easily fly at higher altitudes.
Smoke rising straight into the air means fair weather and smoke hanging
low means rain is on the way. This is pretty much the same as with the birds and methane in the swamp. With the high pressure
approaching and the air becoming denser, smoke will rise whereas with low pressure it can’t rise and tends to lay low.
"Mare’s tails and mackerel scales,
make tall ships carry low sails."
Mare’s tails are actually cirrus clouds. They are high in the atmosphere
and are pulled into long streamers resembling the tail of a mare. The mackerel scales are altocumulus clouds. If a sailor
notices these, he knows that within 12 to 36 hours, the weather will be much too rough to be out on the open water.
PLANTS AND ANIMALS
Both of these seem to be uncanny in their ability to predict
weather. Dogs and cats are notorious for knowing when a tornado or earthquake is imminent. Birds roost early and feed heavily
before a rain or snow. Pigs and squirrels gather more debris to insulate from cold weather.
Chickweed, dandelions, bindweeds, wild indigo, clovers, and tulips all
fold their petals prior to the rain. Rainstars, a type of fungus, opens up prior to a rain and closes in dry weather. Mushrooms,
mosses and seaweeds abound when the weather is moist. In fact, seaweeds exposed on the rocks at low tide seem to swell and
rejuvenate in the high humidity proceeding wet weather. When the atmosphere reaches about 80% humidity, the bog pimpernel
closes and gives rise to this old weather saying:
Pimpernel, pimpernel, tell me true
Whether the weather be fine or no;
No heart can think, no
tongue can tell,
The virtues of the pimpernel.
