Why is “red sky at night” such a reliable thing?

Question

The old adage “red sky at night, sailors delight. Red sky in the morning, sailors take warning” seems to reasonably portend the weather forecast over the next 24 hours. Is there meteorological basis for this?

In: Planetary Science

Answer 1

Red sky in the morning means a low pressure system is on the way. Red sky in the evening means the low pressure system has passed and clear weather is to be expected.