Reading and forecasting the weather is a rare skill among us and for a good reason. We are familiar with the local radio or weather app giving us fairly precise predictions every day, so why know how to read & forecast the weather yourself?
Strategies For Reading And Forecasting The Weather
As a prepper, a key factor you must always have in mind is the impossibility of predicting the future, and I’m not referring to the weather. What I’m saying is, there’s no knowledge of what will be happening during your stay in the wild when SHTF, or if you’ll be having a weather tool handy if you are stranded on a journey.
Sometimes, there are no options besides knowing how to read and forecast the weather yourself.
Some do not understand the need to read or forecast weather. They say it’s not like the weather prediction can change tomorrow, but that’s where they’re making mistakes. Knowing how to read and forecast the weather can make the difference between a good and bad day in the woods. By knowing what’s coming tomorrow or on your trip, you can successfully plan to be adequately prepared.
But how can we read and forecast the weather? Let’s see how below.
Red Skies
There’s a saying that whereas red skies in the morning is a warning to the shepherd, it is more of glad tidings at night. This is a fairly genuine expression. When observing the morning sky, check to see that it is clear, and no redness is clouding it. If there is, there’s rain at hand, because it shows that the sunlight is reflecting on the undersides of the west-to-east migrating clouds. When, on the other hand, the sunset is tainted with red, you can safely travel towards the west, as it means rain clouds are moving towards the east.
Observe The Behavior of Animals
Animals prepare for different incumbent weather conditions in unique ways. Knowing these behaviors will, therefore, be of great benefit to reading and making a forecast. It may be surprising to know how revealing a simple animal act can be.
When it is about to rain, cows lie down, and in case it’s a coming wind, they usually stand looking away from the incoming direction. Ants add more height to their mound if they suspect a heavy rainfall is coming, while other little insects like butterflies and bees withdraw to their caves for cover. If your dog becomes agitated for no reason, there’s most probably a storm by the corner. And should you find seagulls on the beach, it is because they hate to be caught navigating in rough seas.
We can’t possibly cover all the behaviors to look out for in animals when there’s disturbing weather ahead, but the ones mentioned above are the more common observations to make.
Watch Campfire Smoke
The smoke from your campfire travels upward, and so interacts faster with the atmosphere, meaning it can be crucial in your forecast. When your campfire is burning, pay attention to the travel pattern of its smoke.
A steadily rising smoke indicates clear weather and high air pressure while, on the other hand, a swirling and descending smoke path suggests bad weather and low air pressure. This campfire tip will be helpful if you’re camping close to an overlooking mountain that may make it difficult to observe the weather on time.
Sticky Windows & Doors
A common sign of incoming wet weather is the stickiness of windows and doors. When the atmosphere is going wet, there will be increased humidity, which may cause wooden doors and windows to bloat and, thus, become sticky or more challenging to open. Knowing this now, one may be tempted to remember the number of occasions it could have saved you from sudden rainfall, isn’t it?
Summer Fog
How many times have you disregarded a summer fog? You probably can’t remember, can you? Thankfully, neglecting the summer fog doesn’t hurt, because fog during the summer is typically a good omen. It portrays that the skies are clear enough to permit the rise of hot air into the atmosphere, which will thus make way for cool air. So, characteristically, a fog in summertime suggests a sunny, brilliant day ahead.
Reading The Cloud
Just like reading the shadow, cloud reading serves a temporary purpose, but even that may be enough in the wild. It is unarguably better than not knowing at all. There are different types and shapes of clouds; I doubt you’d know that, except you’re in-depth in astrology.
So, paying attention to each is enough to measure the closeness of a storm. Whereas clustered, massed, lower or thicker clouds indicate that there is a storm making its way towards you, high, well spread, and slim slices of clouds are typical indications of a clear, bright day. Also, an important tip is to look out for dull skies. When the clouds are heavy and somewhat dark, it may mean rainfall is at hand.
Solar or Lunar Coronas
Have you noticed the weather conditions after seeing a ring encircling the sun or the moon? I doubt you have. Anyway, a halo-like circle around the sun or moon is merely the reflection of light through water vapor. Depending on some conditions that may be complicated for you to understand, this water vapor may travel closer to earth and bring about increased humidity, which is, more or less, wet weather.
Morning Dew
For dew to appear in the morning, there must have been a dry night characterized by calm winds, which is linked to high air pressure. Remember that above, we mentioned that high air pressure is an indicator of clear weather. And all things being equal, it takes a minimum of 12 hours for a high-pressure system to change to a low-pressure system, meaning that you know the least time you have to enjoy the brightness.
Takeaways On Reading And Forecasting The Weather
Reading and forecasting the weather is a handy skill to have. Forget that you have a smartphone, radio, or weather reading application. Getting stranded is relatively easy. And although your self-made forecasts will not be as accurate as what the radio offers, they will be fairly helpful in a way or two.