Weather rock

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Weather rock
Weather Stone - geograph.org.uk - 1763606.jpg
A weather stone at the Craven Arms pub and cruck barn, Barden, Craven, North Yorkshire, reputedly more accurate than Paul Hudson, a local BBC weather man
Pond restored as a nature reserve - geograph.org.uk - 189812.jpg
A Pond at a nature reserve in Kinsey Heath, Audlem, Cheshire, with a tripod from which a weather rock hangs.
Other namesWeather stone
ClassificationWeather joke
UsesWeather forecasting

The weather rock or weather stone is a humorous display that pokes fun at the intricate technology used in modern weather forecasts, as well as the fact that their accuracy is less than perfect. A rock is typically hung from a tripod and accompanied by a sign indicating how to read it. [1] A portable example of such a display, "the famous Maine Weather Stone" of Audubon Camp, Hog Island, was described in late 1981. [2]

Contents

Instructions

Some examples of the instructions commonly provided for "reading" a weather rock include:

Weather rocks will sometimes include rules for proper maintenance of the system such as, "Please do not disturb the weather rock, it is a finely tuned instrument!"

String variation

In certain circumstances the string may be incorporated into the saying:

Locations

Milestone Weather Forecasting Stone, Newtown St Boswells, Scottish Borders The Milestone weather forecasting stone - geograph.org.uk - 1708774.jpg
Milestone Weather Forecasting Stone, Newtown St Boswells, Scottish Borders

Weather rocks are located all over the world. Some examples include:

See also

References

  1. Eric Shackle, Found - World's Oldest Weather Stone, Open Writing, March 26, 2006, retrieved February 11, 2011.
  2. Robert Deis, Leave the Kids and Radio to Home, Down East: The Magazine of Maine, April 1982, retrieved September 11, 2022.
  3. The Weather Rock, Guardlife volume 27 number 2, retrieved September 8, 2011.
  4. "READER PHOTO: Elliott's "Weather Rock"". GantNews.com. 2022-02-07. Retrieved 2022-06-07.
  5. "Google Maps". Google Maps. Retrieved 2022-06-07.
  6. , Google Maps Street View
  7. , Google Maps Street View
  8. "Pannawonica, Ashburton Shire, Western Australia, Australia".
  9. "お天気石". 奇石博物館 収蔵品 (in Japanese). The Kiseki Museum of World Stones. Retrieved 2022-06-29.