Blazing red skies over Shropshire explained
Did you see the blazing red skies over Shropshire earlier this week?
Shropshire Star readers Lisa Giles and John Hughes did and sent us these stunning pictures.
Lisa made the point that her pictures at 8am on Tuesday over Doseley were "unedited" while John remarked about the "beautiful sky in Ketley".
The Met Office website explains the sayings "Red sky at night, shepherd's delight" and "Red sky in the morning, shepherd's warning"
It first appears in the Bible, in the book of Matthew.
It is an old weather saying, often used at sunrise and sunset to signify the changing sky and was originally known to help the shepherds prepare for the next day's weather.
The scientific understanding is that the saying is "most reliable" when weather systems predominantly come from the west.
"Red sky at night, shepherds delight" can often be proven true, since red sky at night means fair weather is generally heading towards you.
A red sky appears when dust and small particles are trapped in the atmosphere by high pressure. This scatters blue light leaving only red light to give the sky its notable appearance.
A red sky at sunset means high pressure is moving in from the west, so therefore the next day will usually be dry and pleasant.
"Red sky in the morning, shepherds warning" means a red sky appears due to the high-pressure weather system having already moved east meaning the good weather has passed, most likely making way for a wet and windy low-pressure system.
For more see the Met Office website: metoffice.gov.uk/weather/learn-about/weather/how-weather-works/red-sky-at-night
