Forecasting the weather has become a lost art in today’s world. We have become so used to simply turning on the TV or radio and having it delivered to us on demand. Sadly however, the end result of this is that very few people even have any idea how to forecast the weather anymore. It has truly become a lost art, but there is hope and that is what today’s post will be on.
While this skill may remain a mystery for many, it doesn’t have to for you. The national weather Service has a program called “SKYWARN” and you can learn quite a bit about weather and how to predict what the weather is doing from the courses they offer. The purposes of this class is to train storm watchers that can help the weather service know what is going on at ground level and relay that information back to them to help warn others of potential threats that may be in their area. Part of this training is the ability to recognize different types of clouds and what they mean. For example, is the storm strengthening or getting weaker? What type of threats does the storm pose and what direction is it moving? These are all things that can be learned by taking these free classes. Just contact your local weather service and ask for more information on SKYWARN weather spotter classes. This is a great place to get started. There is even an advanced class for those that are interested, that offers even more information.
Once upon a time, looking at the clouds in the sky and watching a barometer combined with a wind vane was really about all the forecasting tools that were available to early settlers and then they were lucky if they had that. They mostly used knowledge that was passed down through the generations on how to predict the weather. Without this, we will have to learn it all over again. While there are a ton of websites on the internet that deal with weather forecasting, too many of them rely on radar and fancy equipment to do their forecasting. These may not always be available in a SHTF world and therefore are of no use to us in regards to our needs at that time. We need to learn how to forecast weather, the way they did prior to all of this. Here are some things to consider; the type of clouds you see in the sky, the color of the sunset or sunrise, and how the moon looks at night. These can all be good indicators of what to be expecting weather wise.
Examining the clouds in the air is a great way to get a good idea what is headed your way. If the clouds are light and fluffy and appear low in the sky early in the morning, then that is a good indication that you could be in for severe weather later in the day. Cirrus clouds that look like long streamers high in the sky generally means bad weather is coming in the next 36 hours.
Examining the color of a sunset or sunrise can tell you a lot about what to expect weather wise. There is an old saying that says “Red sky in morning, sailor take warning but red sky at night is a sailor’s delight”. There is actually quite a bit of truth in that. Since most weather moves West to East for the most part, if you see a red sky at sunrise means that a high pressure system has moved past you and is disturbing the particles in the air to the east of you. It also means that it is most likely being followed by a low pressure system which contains moisture and probably rain.
If you see a rainbow to the west of you, this usually means that rain is coming your way, because a rainbow is formed by the sunlight passing through the water in the atmosphere. If it is to your east then there is a good chance that the weather has already passed. Another tip is looking at the moon at night if it is pale or fuzzy then chance are there is a high pressure system in the area, but if it is sharp and clear then there is probably a low pressure system in the area and low pressure means rain.
Simple little things like this can help you in your day-to-day activities after SHTF hits. If you live near mountains then you have probably heard that you never plant your garden in the spring until the snow is off of the top of the mountain. There are so many little things that can make the difference between life and death after SHTF hits. Learn all you can now while the information is commonly available on the internet, don’t wait till it is gone and wish you had. I am going to place a few links at the bottom of this page so that can you get started learning how to forecast the weather. It’s a great skill to have and you will even find it useful in your day-to-day life. Learn how to do it and amaze your friends with your skill at forecasting the weather. Until next time keep on prepping and learning!
National weather Service – SKYWARN
Old fashion ways to forecast weather
How to predict the weather without a forecast.
