Written by Professor Dr. Abdullah bin Mohammed Al-Shaalan (Professor of Electrical Engineering – King Saud University)

The Arabs in their pre-Islamic era knew quite a bit about nature and life, most of which was due to the stars, which they knew by name and were guided by. They also knew the zodiac signs, the rising points of the sun and moon, and the clouds and their significance from their colors, density, path, and direction, and whether they were rainy or dry. They also researched the conditions of winds and storms and named each type. They mentioned all of this in their poetry and spoke about it in their councils and societies.