Many people may be surprised to learn that this well-known weather saying was first alluded to in the Bible. In Matthew 16:2, Christ is quoted as saying: "When it is evening, you say, 'The weather will be fair, for the sky is red.' And in the morning you say, 'It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and lowering.'"

Interestingly, this oft-quoted weather saying does have some scientific backing.

The red sunset mentioned by Christ was a view of the Sun through dust-laden air that would reach him the next day. In most places, weather patterns usually tend to move from west to east. So, if "tomorrow's air" lies westward, as cloudiness that will bear precipitation, the Sun shining through it appears to be a diffuse disk of yellow or gray, while if the air to the west is dry, the Sun appears as a ruddy hue.

Generally speaking, seven out of ten red sunsets usually indicate good weather in northern climates. Conversely, the ruddy colors seen at sunrise can usually be attributed to cirroform cloudiness scattering the light at the edge of an approaching warm front.