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Weather Lore-Weather By Nature

© Renie Burghardt

As these waning days of dreary February come to an end, it's still a bit early to be heralding the joys of spring. Not that I'm not anxious to tell you that I already heard the spring peepers at the pond the other evening, but if you're snow bound still, you won't like to hear that. So, let us turn our thoughts to a fun subject, instead, on a dreary February day- the weather. More precisely, old time weather lore.

For eons, man has depended upon close observations of nature to forecast the weather. In the days when there were no scientific methods of reading weather patterns, man relied on a keen eye for natural signs which indicated change. Shepherds and sailors developed a keen sense of observation and connected the changes in nature with patterns of weather. Farmers watched cloud movements and the color of the sky to know if it was time to plant and harvest. Hunters learned if it was a good time to hunt by watching animals and insects. These observations were passed down through generations, and became part of culture and education. They are called weather lore.

For example, the saying, "A ring around the sun or moon, means rain or snow coming soon." Just how accurate is this bit of weather lore? Well, lets take the "moon" part first.

Since man has been fascinated by the moon throughout the ages, he has learned a thing or two about it. So the ring around the moon, he found out many moons ago, actually does mean precipitation. This is because cirrus clouds usually proceed low pressure systems bearing moisture. There are ice crystals in these clouds and they refract light. So the next time you see a ring around the moon, prepare for rain or snow soon!

With the ring around the sun, it's not quite that simple. If you look up at the sun at midday and see a ring or halo around it, expect some change within 12 to 24 hours. However, the catch is-if the weather is clear when you see the ring, stormy weather is, indeed, on its way. But if the weather is dreary at the time of the ring, fair weather is about to arrive.

How about the saying, "If the moon's face is red, water ahead"? This is a pretty reliable piece of weather lore. The red color is due to some dust being pushed ahead of a low pressure front bringing moisture. Whereas dust being pushed ahead at my house, usually means I finally couldn't stand it, and got out the dust mop!

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