Religion, Philosophy and Science – The Evolution Of Weather Forecasts

With the advanced methods of weather forecasting available today, it is unimaginable to look back at those used in ancient times to complete a task we now often take for granted. The weather forecast hasn’t always been a small detail reflected on your computer each morning. That’s why it is often helpful to look back at where it all started and why we should be thrilled with the methods we have thus far.

Acts of Religion and The Gods

Before science was even a coined term, back in the BC years, the weather was a phenomenon of spirituality and religion. The state of the weather was understood to be acts or messages from gods and goddesses in different cultures, like Thor in Norse mythology and Zeus in Greek mythology.

Meteorology Philosophy

From this understanding of weather came the study thereof by Greek philosopher, Aristotle. He studied the changes in the atmosphere, founded the term “meteorology” and used it to study the weather further. While his findings were advanced for the time and were used for almost 2000 years, they were eventually overthrown as quite incorrect and unreliable. Cue modern science.

The Turn of The Renaissance

The history of weather forecasting did not move from philosophical straight into what we have today. It took several more centuries to thoroughly study the weather and get to a point where we are given daily forecasts that are usually accurate down to the time of day. After the Renaissance, it was wisely decided that to observe and study the weather, they had to make use of other aspects of advancing technology in conjunction with their own.

The development of weather forecasts from where they started in ancient times to where they are now, has, like everything else in technology and science, improved our lives drastically. All credit due to the archaic methods, but the improvements are leaps and bounds better for us today.