At a time when meteorology and physics were not yet known, and sowing and reaping a rich harvest was the most important task, people turned to nature. The behavior of animals, the characteristics of plants, the direction of the wind and the color of the sky – all this is the basis of folk signs that have been passed down from generation to generation for thousands of years. Observations piled up, and people began to predict for themselves what the new day and even the next six months would be like. In fact, the beliefs that people continue to believe today can be explained from a scientific point of view. One of the most common beliefs is that if the swallow flies low, then it will rain. The explanation is simple: before rainfall, the atmospheric pressure decreases and the humidity rises. As a result, the wings of the flies become heavier and lower them, and the swallows fly to the ground after eating. The same goes for beliefs about frogs. It is believed that jumping ashore portends bad weather. But they, like swallows, follow the flies flying above the ground.
There are other birds that portend rain. These are the sparrows that “bathe” in the dust. It turns out that parasites are born in the feathers, which due to the drop in atmospheric pressure before the rain become active and disturb the birds. To get rid of pests and itching, sparrows clean their feathers and together with the dust get rid of parasites. Rain beliefs are one of the most common. For example, that changes over time can be traced to conifers. Before the rain the branches are saturated with moisture, swell and fall under the weight. There is a similar explanation for the phenomena that occur with bees. Due to microscopic droplets invisible to the human eye, bees’ wings get wet before the rain, so bees prefer to stay in the hive and wait for bad weather. Rain forecasts are also made for plants. Usually before rain, roses, acacia, honeysuckle and sweet clover emit a stronger aroma, releasing more nectar to attract insects. So they try to pollinate before the rain washes away all the pollen from them. And dandelions, violets, clover and water lilies close their flowers to save pollen and seeds.
For the ancients, this would be incredible, but most beliefs are explained by changes in humidity, atmospheric pressure and the laws of physics. The loud whistling of crickets in dry weather is due to the fact that the sound of rubbing the elytra in such conditions spreads better. And the red sun at sunset – with the density of moist air, through which only the long waves of light reach us. Colds are often judged by pets. For example, cats experience fluctuations in atmospheric pressure and, in order to retain heat, they contract into a ball and cover their nose, reducing the area of heat release. For the same reasons, the hens stand on one foot, as the ground is already cooling. There are many beliefs and superstitions among the people. But many of them related to time are true, because natural processes are natural in terms of biology, physics, chemistry and other sciences.
Forecasts on celestial bodies
“The moon makes time for the earth” The moon, as it moves around the earth, creates tidal waves in the oceans. Simultaneously, but on a much smaller scale, waves occur in the atmosphere. These tides are expressed as fluctuations in air pressure with an amplitude of approximately 0.02 millimeters of mercury. But those who follow the weather know that when it changes, daily fluctuations in atmospheric pressure can reach and exceed 20-30 mmHg. That is, the impact of lunar tides on the atmosphere is very insignificant. Beliefs about the influence of the Moon on the Earth’s time have emerged rather because due to changes in humidity in the Earth’s atmosphere, the Moon looks different to people at different times.
“Clear moon promises frost” In clear skies, lowering the temperature at night is accompanied by additional “cooling”: it seems to blow cold from the ground. The frost is getting worse. For example, at -10 ° C the temperature near the snow cover on a clear night can be -20 ° C. Therefore, the given trust is plausible. A sign of severe cold are the optical phenomena – lunar and solar poles (or solar cross), which are observed only when the atmosphere is calm and stable. “The halo effect portends bad weather” The appearance of thin feathery clouds in the sky most often indicates a change in weather: in winter – for warming, in summer – for possible rain. At these heights, where the “feathers” are located, water vapor is in the form of ice crystals. The light coming from the sun or the moon is refracted in a special way at the edges of the ice, creating such a beauty as a halo.
Cloud forecasts
The forecasts for the coming days are well explained by the laws of atmospheric processes. To clarify them, it is desirable to know the basic meteorological concepts. The atmosphere is an ocean, where currents of different air masses are constantly observed. Each has its own characteristics (air mass of the polar latitudes or temperate or tropical …). There is a rather narrow transition zone or (conditionally) dividing line between them. In meteorology, such a zone of “instability”, which is characterized by large contrasts (or abrupt changes) in temperature and humidity, is called the atmospheric front. Cyclones periodically occur in the front. This is a vortex with reduced air pressure, which looks like a powerful air funnel. This section of the front, which moves in front of the cyclone, is considered warm: the wind before the “funnel” carries warm air from the south. The section of the front that moves at the rear of the cyclone is a cold front: here the wind, turning west or north, carries cold air. After about a week the atmosphere calms down and the cyclone is replaced by an anticyclone – an area of high pressure: for a while the weather becomes balanced. The warm and cold parts of the atmospheric front are characterized by their own set of meteorological phenomena. The most dangerous meteorological phenomena – torrential hail, hail, hurricane, sometimes tornado, and in winter snowfall and blizzard – occur during an active cold front. Let’s look at these phenomena with the example of a summer day. “Feather clouds portend bad weather” Feather clouds are harbingers of a warm front. The front is expected in about half a day or a day. But it is not a fact that there will be precipitation. It can end in warming. However, if feathery clouds appear behind them, then yes: five to seven hours after their appearance, layered rain clouds will appear and warm rain will begin. “It’s suffocating – no thunderstorm will pass” After crossing a warm front, there is usually a lull for a day or three (or more). For how much – depends on the strength of the wind at a height. The temperature will rise day by day. Before the displacement of the cold front with rain and thunderstorms can become unbearably stuffy – the moisture content in the air increases significantly. The sky acquires a cloudy and whitish hue. Tails, fans and an anvil at the top of the cloud are signs of an impending strong thunderstorm and hail. The appearance of high cumulus clouds in the morning often indicates a thunderstorm or a change in weather. Usually such clouds in the form of threads, veils or ridges appear on the western side of the sky and seem to come from one point on the horizon. An hour and a half to two hours before the approach of the front with thunderstorms in the sky, lenticular clouds appear. Sometimes they have a regular elliptical shape and can look like UFOs. The pressure continues to drop. The cumulus cloud grows before our eyes and acquires a stunning appearance: below – lead blue, above – dazzling white. The color depends on the different reflection of light: the lower level consists of relatively large water droplets, then the drops decrease, the upper consists of ice crystals. The cloud becomes cumulonimbus. If after a short time the top grows and the borders are blurred (protrusions, tails are formed) or – most dangerous of all – an anvil stretched in the wind appears, there is a high probability that hail will start. The anvil is a huge reservoir of ice crystals. They rush down, uniting in this space flight. Often, before a thunderstorm passes, it brightens sharply for a brief moment, the wind dies down … But then, just as abruptly, “night comes.”
