Weather & Climate
A pine cone can close long after it falls. What has it picked up about the air around it?
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Can a pine cone tell you when it’s going to rain?
A fallen cone can close its scales long after the cells inside them have died. To read that weather sign, it helps to know what makes the wood move.
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Does a ring around the Moon mean rain?
In a photograph from a Chilean mountaintop, the Moon wears a ring wide enough to hold a handful of stars. Its inner edge gives away what’s floating overhead.
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Which weather signs can you trust?
A red sky needs a compass. A pine cone knows its own porch. An old Great Lakes storm warning shows what happens when you can see the weather from the next town over.