Here you see yesterday’s overcast sky on the first day of the new year:
However, at dusk the low setting sun and our winter-tilted hemisphere created a thin opportunity for sun beams to pierce between the cloud layer and the horizon – and create a minute or two of red sky:
This, of course, evoked the old rhyme, “Red sky at night, sailors’ delight; Red sky at morning, sailors take warning.” Similar observations about good red night skies and bad red morning skies appear in the Bible and in Shakespeare. Are they true? Often they are, according to the experts.
A red sky at night from a setting sun means that the sun is sending its low light through a concentration of dust particles. This usually indicates high pressure and stable air coming in on the prevailing winds from the west. Basically good weather should follow.
A red sky in the morning from a sunrise can mean that a high-pressure system (good weather) has passed, thus indicating that a storm system (low pressure) may be moving to the east. It also can mean that there is high water content in the atmosphere. Both situations often mean rain is coming.
As for last night’s red sky, there is no dispute: This morning is sunny and clear – a sailor’s delight. (Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on January 1, 2024.)