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An old tree in Chongqing municipality is said to be able to forecast weather.[Photo/Sina Weibo]

Old tree forecasts weather for villagers

Are you tired of watching the weather forecast on TV? Maybe you should come to Chongqing, where there's an old tree that is surprisingly accurate in predicting the weather, Chongqing Evening News reported on Thursday.

The tree, located in a county in Chongqing, is 60 meters tall and has a diameter of three meters at chest level.

Close to the ground, 90 percent of the trunk is hollow, creating a space large enough for more than 10 people to stand inside. The empty space becomes smaller towards the top, forming a hole through which people can see the sky and predict weather changes.

According to a local jingle, if there is mist hanging around the hole on a sunny day, rain can be expected two days later. If clouds can be seen through the hole, lingering rain will stop.

An expert from the local meteorological bureau explained that the temperature differs between the inside and outside of the big trunk, so that people can witness these potential changes by observing mist or clouds.

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