| Red sky at morning, sailor take warning. | | | | cause the halo mentioned in this proverb. |
| Red sky at night, sailor's delight | | | | Cirrostratus clouds are very thin, high altitude |
| Old proverbs such as this were the earliest | | | | clouds that give the sky a milky white |
| weather forecasts. Passed down from generation | | | | appearance. If you see cirrostratus clouds, you |
| to generation, these rhymes helped our ancestors | | | | can indeed expect rain or snow within 24 hours. |
| recognize when a storm was brewing or a cold | | | | Written in the Wind |
| snap was on the way. | | | | |
| Long before Doppler radar, farmers and sailors in | | | | "He doesn't know which way the wind is blowing." |
| Colonial America knew how to predict the | | | | This old saying means that a person is a fool who |
| weather by reading the wind and watching the | | | | can't see an obvious trend. |
| skies. Their approach to reading the weather is | | | | Knowing the wind direction was vital to the lives |
| just as useful in today's world. | | | | of farmers and anyone working outdoors. That's |
| Watching the Clouds | | | | why every early American farmhouse featured a |
| | | | weathervane. The direction your weathervane |
| Red sky at morning, sailor take warning. | | | | pointed could warn a coming storm or tell if it was |
| Red sky at night, sailor's delight | | | | a good day to work the fields. |
| This is perhaps the best-known weather proverb, | | | | Colonial Americans loved weathervanes and |
| but what does it mean, exactly? | | | | adapted them into beautiful, ornate designs, |
| The type and color of clouds in the sky can be an | | | | including flying eagles, angels and leaping fish. In |
| excellent weather predictor. When the sun rises | | | | part these designs were aesthetic; in part they |
| or sets, its light takes on a reddish tint as it is | | | | were functional, since they made the |
| filtered through the atmosphere. | | | | weathervane easier to read from across the |
| To have a red sky in the morning, the eastern | | | | fields. |
| sky needs to be clear of clouds and the western | | | | So what does wind direction tell us? This proverb |
| sky must be cloudy. Since the prevailing wind | | | | gives an idea. |
| direction in the northern hemisphere is west to | | | | |
| east, a red sky at morning means that storm | | | | When the wind is blowing in the North |
| clouds are headed your way. | | | | No fisherman should set forth. |
| Likewise, a red sky at night means that the | | | | When the wind is blowing in the East, |
| clouds are to the east and clear skies to the | | | | 'Tis not fit for man nor beast. |
| west, all of which meant that you can expect a | | | | When the wind is blowing in the South |
| calm night. | | | | It brings the food over the fish's mouth. |
| | | | When the wind is blowing in the West, |
| Halo around the sun or moon, | | | | That is when the fishing's best! |
| Means rain or snow soon | | | | In the eastern half of the United States the |
| This old rhyme can forecast precipitation within | | | | prevailing winds blow from the west. A shift in |
| the next 24 hours. There are several different | | | | wind direction toward the east or north means |
| types of clouds, and the appearance of some is a | | | | bad news. It could even mean that a dreaded |
| pretty good sign that rain or snow are on their | | | | "Nor'easter" was approaching. |
| way. | | | | Keep that in mind next time you see a |
| A halo around either the sun or the moon is | | | | weathervane. It might tell you whether you need |
| caused by ice crystal floating inside cirrostratus | | | | your umbrella soon. |
| clouds. The ice crystals refract light, which will | | | | |