Shepherd’s Warning, Waipukurau

One of the most persistent of the weather sayings, used by shepherds is ‘Red sky at night shepherd’s delight, Red sky in the morning is a shepherd’s sure warning’.

This was a rhyme that was made up to remind shepherds how to predict weather patterns. Red sky at night$ means that as the sun sets in the west, if it has a red hue or color to it, then the moisture was further west of their location. Thus a shepherds delight. A beautiful sunset.

On the otherhand, a red sky in the morning means that as the sunlight from the rising sun passes through moisture, it too will be red. This means that with the rotation of the earth, this will bring this moisture (and possible storm) right on top of them and it is only a few hours away. So shepherds take this as a warning.