Red Sky in the Morning!

Red sky in the morning! Watch out!

When my children were little, they used to notice the red sky and inquired why it was red. In my explanation, I shared the statement my mom had shared with me-

Red Sky at night, sailor's delight.  Red sky in the morning, sailor take warning

Of course when they were little, it was a little easier to get them to believe me. I will never forget the day my daughter, in her wisdom, said to me "Really mom?How can simply looking at a red sky predict bad weather moving in!"

This morning, my son shouted this phrase as we looked outside and he quickly saw the pink hue on the morning clouds. With the prediction of snow for today, he is eager to see if the warning will come true!

Weatherlore or Weather Folklore is related to the prediction of weather. For centuries, people have been fascinated with the weather and with trying to forecast upcoming weather. As people made observations of the sky, water, and even insects, those observations were soon connected to changes in the rhythms or patterns of weather.

These observations were then translated into short sayings or rhymes for ease of memory. These sayings were then passed down from generation to generation. Some have been altered by the wisdom of the times.

Here are some ways weatherlore was used in the past:

·     Farmers used to watch cloud movement and the sky color to know when to sow and reap.

·     Mariners noted wind shifts and observed wave motions for signs of change.

Believe it or not, there is some truth to some weather folklore statements! Here are a couple that have been proven to be true:

• Halo around the sun or moon, rain or snow soon
• Clear moon, frost soon

Click here for a kids weather site that has some other statements. Here is another great site with lots of great information.

Start collecting data to see if any other of the weatherlore statements are true!

Go Science!