
It can make a beautiful start to the day!
Nicholas Springer
Have you ever heard the term "Red Sky in the Morning, Sailors take warning; red sky at night, Sailors delight"? There is actually science that can make it true!
As the sun rises in the east, and it is still low on the horizon, the sunlight must pass through a lot of our atmosphere. Since there is a lot of moister and/or dust in the air, it can exaggerate the red light show we think is so pretty. But that excess moisture may also bring with it severe weather from the west as the day progresses.

I first heard this adage as a child, but then again later in my 20's as I was taking my captains classes it came up again. Since our weather generally comes from the west, fronts will push the particulate and moisture to the east and then disperses the sunrise so that mostly red light is visible. The front that pushed the moisture to the east is still coming from the west, possibly bringing something with it, sometimes including sever weather.
While knowing this is not necessarily going to save a life as it would on a past sailing vessel, it is fascinating to see and know that we may need to prepare shoreside for some windy weather.