Back Aa

Meteorology; or Weather Explained

Close

<h2>CHAPTER XIX</h2> A WINTER FOREGLOW Little attention has been paid to foreglows compared with afterglows, either with regard to their natural beauty or their weather forecasting. But either the ordinary red-cloud surroundings at sunrise, or the western foreglow at rarer intervals, betokens to the weather-prophet wet and gloomy weather. The farmer and the sailor do not like the sight, they depend so much on favourable weather conditions. Of course, sunrise to the æsthetic observer has always its charms. The powerful king of day rejoices “as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber” as he steps upon the earth over the dewy mountain tops, bathing all in light, and spreading gladness and deep joy before him. The lessening cloud, the kindling azure, and the mountain’s brow illumined with golden streaks, mark his approach; he is encompassed with bright beams, as he throws his unutterable love upon the clouds, “the beauteous robes of heaven.” Aslant the dew-bright earth and coloured air he looks in boundless majesty abroad, touching the green leaves all a-tremble with gold light. But glorious, and educating, and inspiring as is the sunrise in itself in many cases, there is occasionally something very remarkable that is connected with it. Rare is it, but how charming when witnessed, though till very recently it was all but unexplained. This is the foreglow. It is in no respect so splendid as the afterglow succeeding sunset; but, because of its comparative rarity, its beauty is enhanced. I remember a foreglow most vividly which was seen at my manse, in Strathmore, in January 1893. My bedroom window looked due west; I slept with the blind up. On that morning I was struck, just after the darkness was fading away, with a slight colouring all along the western horizon. The skeleton branches of the trees stood out strongly against it. The colouring gradually increased, and the roseate hue stretched higher. The old well-known faces that I used to conjure up out of the thin blended boughs became more life-like, as the cheeks flushed. There was rare warmth on a winter morning to cheer a half-despairing soul, tired out with the long hours of oil reading, and pierced to the heart by the never-ceasing rimes; yet I could not understand it. I went to the room opposite to watch the sunrise, for I had observed in the diary that the appearance of the sun would not be for a few minutes. There were streaks of light in the east above the horizon, but no colour was visible. That hectic flush—slight, yet well marked—which was deepening in the western heavens, had no counterpart in the east, except the colourless light which marked the wintry sun’s near approach. As soon as the sun’s rays shot up into the eastern clouds, and his orb appeared above the horizon, the western sky paled, the colour left it, as if ashamed of its assumed glory. A foreglow like that I have very rarely seen, and its existence was a puzzle to me till I studied Dr. Aitken’s explanation of the afterglows after sunset. I had never come across any description of a foreglow; and, of course, across no explanation of the curious phenomenon. The western heavens were coloured with fairly bright roseate hues, while the eastern horizon was only silvery bright before the sun rose; whereas, after the sun appeared and coloured the eastern hills and clouds, the western sky resumed its leaden grey and colourless appearance. Why was that? What is the explanation? I have not space enough to repeat the explanation given already in the last chapter of the glorious phenomenon of the afterglow. But the explanation is similar. Before sunrise, the rays of the sun are reflected by dust-particles in the zenith to the western clouds. The colouring is intensified by the frozen water-vapour on these particles in the west. One thing I carefully noted. Ere mid-day, snow began to fall, and for some days a severe snow-storm kept us indoors. Then, at any rate, the foreglow betokened a coming storm. It was, like a rainbow in a summer morning, a decided warning of the approaching wet weather.     <hr style="width: 50%;" /> <div style="break-after:column;"></div>

1 of 2

2 of 2