Steve and robham777, Thanks guys. I stumbled upon this board looking for long term forecasts. I don't plan on getting too involved I know squat about the discussions. For example: I read something about a tidal effect of Jupiter on the Sun? If you asked me I would say squat. As in what are the chances the Fed move to purchase bonds (QE2) will have any effect on the US economy? Answer: Squat. I suppose it means something other then having to do with the movement of water since the sun doesn't have water. However I believe transits could affect the weather. I also am a believer in gravity being a pushing force, not a pulling force. Side note: My favorite long range weather report is at the Harrison Hot Springs Resort in Beautiful British Columbia. Chalk on a board at the concierge desk simply says "Look outside".
Tides are related to the gradient of a gravitational field. So a smaller object closer object can have a stronger tidal effect than a larger object that is further away.
They have more noticeable effect on fluids (water and gas) than solids because the latter are more rigid - but basically they do act on anything. They will act on the gases in the sun, but the planets are far from the sun so their measured tidal effect is small.
The transit of the moon across the sun has an effect on local weather during an eclipse - but then the moon is casting a big cold shadow on parts of the earth.
For examples of where the gravitational forces combined with orbits of the planets result in what look like "pushing forces" look up "trojan asteroids".
No matter, again, the laws of physics as they apply to the Earth's climate and weather proves that celestial bodies - in space - force our world's climate:
The Sun controls the constitution of the atmosphere. In effect, the Sun forces the Earth's climate and weather:
Planets regulate organic changes in weather ~
(a) By changing impressions when they are at certain point in their eccentric orbits, or by varying declinations north or south of the earth's equator, thereby affecting both electrical and chemical changes in the Earth's atmosphere;
(b - When in major stations, that is, either on the celestial equator, in maximum declination, in perigee (closest to Earth), in perihelion (closest to the Sun), or when apparently stationary in geocentric longitude;
(c - By angular relationship with the Sun or between each other in longitude, and
(d - By radical occupancy or eastward transit over any given terrestrial meridian or in angular relation to that meridian. These factors may be interpreted from key charts calculated for the exact times the sun crosses the equinoctial or solstice points; secondary charts prepared for the times of the New and Full Moons provide a more exact timing reference.
The Moon is the functional element; it reflects Barometric and Atmospheric tidal changes that have already been indicated by solar and/or planetary phenomena.
Seasonal anomalies of weather are determined as much by celestial bodies in declination (north or south of the celestial equator) as by longitude. The Moon's effect is easily observed by those who observe, record, and study the Moon's transits by phase and position over local regions and its effect on the sea, earth, and air tides.
The Earth-Moon Relationship
One recent study by the National Weather Service indicates that, in the country as a whole, about 10% more rain and occasions of heaviest rain occur in the days following a New or Full moon--that is, in the days following the greatest tidal variation each lunar month.
Another study indicates the greater tendency for tropical storms to attain hurricane status at these same times.
Astrometeorologists have long known that lunar maximum declinations often lead to intense storms - in all seasons. These previous climate events show lunar maximum by declination is related to this short list events in years past -
Tropical Cyclone Mala strikes Burma
April 29-30, 2006
Moon transiting towards maximum north declination at 23o23'
Tropical Cyclone Monica Hits Northeastern Australia
April 19, 2006
Moon at maximum south declination
Hurricane Andrew
August 24, 1992
Moon at maximum north declination on August 22 1992
Hurricane Katrina strikes U.S. Gulf Coast
August 29, 2005
Moon at maximum north declination on August 28, 2005
Atlantic Blizzard of 1993
March 12-13, 1993
Moon at maximum south declination on March 14, 1993
Hurricane Wilma pounds the Yucatan Peninsula
October 21-23, 2005
Moon at maximum north declination October 22, 2005
Once every 14 days, severe weather systems prompt the issuing of severe weather warnings by the National Weather Service always occur.
This is due to the Moon's apogee and perigee cycles - orbits of the Moon that take place every 27.3 days.
At only ten (10) earth-circumferences away the Moon is very close, actually it is our closest celestial neighbor, and it has two-and-a-half times the gravitational pull of the Sun.
Therefore it exerts an influence on everything movable on our planet, be it solid, liquid or gas.
Much of this influence is barely noticeable because there is nothing to compare it too, like the rising of the land towards the transiting Moon, called the Earth Tide, and the receding of it back again within 24 hours.
See -
www.iol.ie/~geniet/eng/moonperb.htmEach Lunar phase has a changing effect on the weather, whether it be droughts, hurricanes, tornadoes or lightning. And as the atmosphere has its daily tide, the air density too is forever changing.
If it did not, barometric pressures would always remain constant.
The volume of air changes just as the volume of sea water in a bay during high sea tide, but we can see that. We can't see a high AIR tide because we haven't yet invented an instrument to detect it. Yet by deduction we can conclude that it must occur.
To put it another way, it would be very odd if the Moon chose to daily pull upward the sea and land but decided against daily changing the height of Earth's massive ocean of air.
At each New Moon, for two or three days, the Moon shields us from the solar winds - the very powerful electromagnetic energies sent forth into space by our pulsating Sun.
Ancient cultures knew that at this time of maximum shielding, the New moon was the best time for planting and fishing, and over thousands of years grew the lunar planting and fishing calendar.
Why do you think 13 is considered 'unlucky'? The number 13 has always known as the Moon's number, because 13 features so much in the mathematics of the Moon's orbits - 13 Full and New Moons each year, there are 13 declination cycles, 13 perigee and apogee cycles, and the Moon moves 13-degrees per day through space in its monthly orbit around the Earth.
Lesser known to non-astrometeorologists are the orbit anomalies that occur at roughly 13 weeks and 13 years.
Every 13 years the phases recur (just over a week later). Every 26-years the opposite phase and apse occur about the same time.
Every 31 years (18+13) the opposite phase of the Moon occurs about two days later. Every 5 years (18-13) the opposite phase occurs (about 3 weeks later) with a single relation to the apse.
The peaks and troughs of these lunar cycles sometimes coincide with Full or New Moon phases, which often result in gales, heavy rains and extra high tides, that can then lead to flooding.
Apogee has the Moon at furthest lunar distance from Earth, and Perigee has the Moon orbiting closer to Earth.
When it peaks in two positions in this cycle, the Moon has more gravitational pull on the atmosphere, which leads to unsettled conditions.
The Weather is what happens when atmospheric tides are gravitationally pulled around by the Moon.
The atmosphere is a mass of gas weighing five million billion tons. Just like the ocean-tide, every day the atmospheric-tide comes "in" and then goes "out".
More like higher and lower, with a stretched atmosphere extending higher into the heavens when the air-tide is in, and coming lower towards Earth ground level when the air- tide is out.
The Moon has about one sixth - 1/6 - of the Earth’s gravitational force. From only a couple of hundred thousand miles away, changes in the Moon's orbital patterns have major effects on Earth.
Between a third and a quarter the size of Earth, the Moon orbits in a strange 8 pattern - reaching maximum declinations to the north and south every two (2) weeks.
Simply stated, changes in the Moon’s movement can trigger changes in our weather.
How it works is rather logical, but conventional scientists seem to have a vested interest in not stating it, nor teaching it in meteorological schools.
Meteorologists utilize sea level or sea surface temperature analysis as tools in forecasting.
Astrometeorologists know that sea tides/levels/temps are affected by many lunar factors, including: synodic cycle, apsidal cycle(perigee/apogee), apsidal angle, declination angle, declination hemisphere, inclination, nodal or nutation cycle, apsidal cycle, anaomalistic cycle, tide cycle, variable diurnalism, moon’s angular momentum crossing ecliptic and equator, tide times and other cycles within cycles - it is very difficult to see just how conventional meteorologists can rule out the Moon as an empirical variable?
And, this is not even mentioning secondary factors such as wind speed and force, high and low pressure zones, cycles of currents, land movement etc.
By virtue of tides and gravitational pull the Moon has its stamp on anything to do with the oceans.
It is a known fact that there are at least four separate but sometimes interfacing tides caused by lunar gravitation.
The best known is the sea-tide, the exact times of which repeat every so many weeks, months and years.
There is also the inner-core tide affecting the molten core of the Earth (Core Tide) which plays a major role in the cycles of earthquakes and eruptions, the land-tide (called Earth-tide, where the ground rises towards the Moon about 8 inches per day as the Moon goes overhead and then recedes again when the Moon goes below the horizon) and the air-tide affecting the height of the atmosphere.
If the Moon has an effect on the sea then it must control the tides by distribution of the water. So is it silly to state that if it has an effect on the atmosphere then it must control the weather by distribution of the clouds?
Why should clouds, air, land and inner mantle not be tidal? They too, are masses of flexible matter. As masses they are subject to the pull of a large gravitational body such as a close Moon.
The movable fluids on Earth would like to fly off into space toward the Moon, but are more strongly held to Earth by the Earth’s gravity and so remain on the Earth’s surface. But the inconstant transits of the Moon causes these fluids to be in flux.
One can liken the atmosphere to a fat rubber band; the top of which can stretch toward the Moon as the Moon goes overhead and then unstretch again when the Moon goes below the horizon.
Because the weight of a rubber band remains constant either stretched or at rest, the Barometer, which only measures the weight of the atmosphere, cannot detect when the atmosphere changes height.
This is why a barometer will seem to stay the same, even though the weather might change.
Atmospheric tides were researched in 1807 and rediscovered by British scientists Appleton and Weekes in 1939, who were investigating the strange phenomenon that shortwave radio signals reached around the world more clearly at New and Full Moon phases.
They concluded if the atmosphere (or ‘stratosphere’) made radio waves change clarity because of the phase of the Moon, then there must be a tidal effect in the air.
There are scientific measurements of the atmospheric tide attributable to the Moon.
Whenever the Moon is above the horizon it has two bulges beneath it. These are pulled by gravitational attraction.
One is made of
water and the other is a bulge of
air.
The ever-changing replacement of the water bulge results in the sea tide and the replacement of air within the air bulge results in the weather.
When the Moon is
above the horizon, it is stretching the air and attracting, by gravitational pull, more atmosphere to higher levels in the sky - creating a larger volume gaseous environment.
The atmosphere is now a fraction higher and the amount can be up to 25% between phases.
The highest it gets is on a Full Moon night. If the useful atmosphere is 5 miles thick, then this stretch could be 1.25 miles, or for an accepted total depth of atmosphere of 60 miles, the atmospheric-tidal difference between high and low could be up to 15 miles.
The result of a higher atmosphere is to keep the cold of space further away from Earth.When the air height is lower because the Moon has set below the horizon and takes the air bulge with it, the cold of space creeps closer to the Earth, and the subsequent drop in temperature can cause clouds to condense at this time. That will happen during the day of a Full moon, and this is why it often clouds up on that day around noon-time.
When the Moon is below the horizon it is more likely to rain. If no rain happens, temperatures will most likely drop. Very often rain will also fall an hour or so on either side of the Moon setting.
At New Moon, when the Moon is overhead during the day, rain is less likely - but rain is more likely at night at this phase.
In contrast, at Full Moon, the nights will nearly always be clear. Old mariners used to have nautical saying: "the Full Moon eats clouds."
The transits of the Moon during its phases relative to the Earth has long been known to cause weather changes for many centuries.
By studying the Sun and the Moon the budding student of astronomical forecasting will be taking their first steps in learning how to someday forecast advanced climate and weather on Earth.
