Rains from Capricorn to Aquarius to Pisces

We had consistent predictions of showers for the day, and expected steady rain in the night of Root/Earth Constellation.  So far, in  this Constellation, we have had gusty winds, various types of clouds, and a few sprinkles (light showers,) even including a distant rainbow at mid-day.  But the daytime rains held off, which is a pattern we had in Flower/Air Constellations in March and April.

It seems that this is the TYPE of storm, often with extended periods of high winds, followed by heavy rain.  The ambitious purpose of this blog is to track the storms, and see if they change character near the cusps.  Since they move across the country at a rate of 500 to 1000 km each day, a small group of people can define the storm in unison.

In fact, late night brought strong winds and short bursts of rain – not the STEADY RAIN predicted, and noted in Root/Earth Constellations in Summer.  The clouds cleared at dawn, but then are returning as Stratus clouds, no rain threatening, but large, fast moving and low.  In the evening the Root/Earth Constellation passed into Flower/Air.

So, in the Flower/Air Constellation of Aquarius, we have had some steady rains, with large cumulonimbus clouds covering wide areas of the sky.  We have had the steady rains about once every six hours, interspersed with clear skies. 

Meanwhile, we have shifted into Pisces, starting at 0700 UTC, 19 May, until the moon moves into Aries at 0300 UTC, 22 May.  It has been hard to notice IF it rains, since the water on the ground does not evaporate – it is COLD!

First Rains of Autumn

We have not had any rain since the equinox, when I started this blog!  So yesterday, in the Fruit/Fire Constellation, we did have significant rain, ending a along dry spell which allowed the grapes and tomatoes to ripen well.  The rain was accompanied by stiff winds and the style of the rain was in downpours, with thick Cumulonimbus cloud cover all day.

The hours before a storm are known for high ionization of the air, and a sense of activity has moved me to get outside and moving.  Yesterday we took a short hike up to 330 meters from our seaside town.  We were just at the base of the clounds, so were delighted to get a view of distant shores in between gusts.  Luckily we were almost down as the first of a long series of downpours blew in. 

The rain and wind are much easier to report when compared to cloud types.  The surprise in this report is that the rain arrived in a Fruit/Fire Constellation, which we had not had.  This began a series of new aspects of this research!

Cloud Types Photo Link

This project, comparing Characteristics of clouds and rains and we need to have a definition of Cloud Type.  For this purpose, I suggest we use  http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cloud_types.jpg  until one of your comments leads to an improvement and we identify a photograph that is more appropriate for our needs. 
In selecting  http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cloud_types.jpg I have tried to find a photo that is simple,  that all can save to their own computer.  This may make it easier to communicate basic information amongst us, but not be detailed enough to differentiate and define the Characteristics of clouds and rains.  Our findings will inform us more about our needs.

Old saying are helpful in understanding the weather.  Forecasters have a massive array of technology in play to predict short-term weather patterns.  This does reduce our need to be precise about the types of clouds passing.  It is likely that we will see marked differences between summer and winter clouds, and also the intervening seasons. 

My expectation is that the timing of rain rhythms, perhaps like “rain-heavy-by-day, drizzle-by-night” or rain only near the cusps, will show the general effects based on the Biodynamic Calendar.   But in these initial research phases, looking for general rules, we will take note of the Ascendent/Descendent and Phases of the Moon, in addition to the Constellations.  A possible key is changes in clouds in different Constellations, so we should use these tagged titles – Cirrus, Cirrocumulus, Altostratus, Cumulonimbus, Cumulus, Nimbostratus, and Stratus – Keep Posted!