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Clouds
A cloud is a visible body of very fine water droplets or ice particles suspended in the atmosphere at altitudes up to several miles above sea level. They are generally produced by the condensation of water vapor. Other clouds, less commonly seen, are composed of smokes or dusts.
10,186 Questions
What kinds of clouds you can see before a tornado?
Before a tornado, you may see dark, low-lying clouds with a greenish tint, known as wall clouds or shelf clouds. These can be associated with severe weather and serve as a warning sign for potential tornado activity. Additionally, you may observe ominous rotating clouds or a funnel cloud forming, which can indicate an imminent tornado.
Cumulonimbus clouds typically bring heavy rain, thunderstorms, lightning, strong winds, and sometimes hail. They are associated with severe weather events such as tornadoes and extreme weather conditions.
How do aerosols effect clouds?
Aerosols can act as cloud condensation nuclei, providing surfaces for water vapor to condense onto and form cloud droplets. They can also alter cloud microphysical properties, such as droplet size and distribution, which can affect cloud lifetime, precipitation, and radiative properties. Overall, aerosols have complex effects on cloud formation and properties, impacting regional and global climate.
How do you separate dust from fluffy blanket?
One way to separate dust from a fluffy blanket is by using a lint roller or tape to pick up the dust particles. Another method is to shake the blanket vigorously outdoors to dislodge the dust, followed by brushing it with a soft brush to remove any remaining particles. Alternatively, you can also use a vacuum cleaner with a brush attachment to suck up the dust.
What three ingredients result in the formation of cloud?
Three ingredients that result in the formation of clouds are water vapor, condensation nuclei (or particles in the air), and cool air temperatures. When water vapor in the air cools and condenses around these particles, it forms cloud droplets which eventually come together to create clouds.
What major clouds shape is found at the highest layers of the troposphere?
Cirrostratus clouds are found at the highest layers of the troposphere. These thin, wispy clouds form above 20,000 feet and are composed of ice crystals. They often cover large areas of the sky and can create halos around the sun or moon.
Are cirrus clouds higher than cirrocumulus clouds?
Yes, cirrus clouds are higher in altitude than cirrocumulus clouds. Cirrus clouds form at higher altitudes in the atmosphere compared to cirrocumulus clouds, which are lower and typically found closer to the Earth's surface.
The Lighter Side of History
Ah, one of the greatest and most important discoveries of mankind, was made in 1129 by a French noble man by the name of Jean Luc Gaspar du Fondu Falubert. As a child Jean Luc was picked on relentlessly by his parents because of his proclivity for lazing about. It was his father who used to always say; "Sacre bleu!", (That's French, I'll translate the rest for you), "you weel never amount to anyting!." I left the accent in for the sake of authenticity. Poor Jean Luc could never just lie in the back yard of their mansion and suckle grass while staring up at the sky, so he had to wander the country side for a safe spot where he could dawdle. That's French for goof off. One day, while suckling a blade of grass while lying on his back in a country field near the South of France he noticed something he had never noticed before. It was the soft billowy formation of white puffs of atmosphere that Jean Luc called clouds. He had wondered why he never saw them before but just naturally assumed because he was never really given a chance by his family to dawdle at home, so he never had enough time to notice things such as clouds.
When Jean Luc got home that day, he took his father to task for never allowing him to admire the sky and demanded to know why his father had never told him about the clouds. "De what?" His father asked in genuine confusion. "You know, de soft beelowy poofs of atmoesphir!" Jon Luc shot back. "What soft beelowy poofs of atmosphir?" His father asked in genuine curiosity. Jean Luc took his father outside and showed him the clouds. His father was astonished to see these soft billowy puffs of atmosphere and wondered out loud why he had never seen them before. Jean Luc responded; "Proabably because your fadder never let you lie in the fields and look at de sky." Jean Luc's father nodded his head solemnly in agreement and with a little shame. He patted his son on the back and left to see the kings astronomers to see if they had any knowledge of clouds.
While at the kings court, Jean Luc's father demanded of the astronomers to explain why they had never made public the existence of clouds. "Of what?" asked the kings astronomer. "De clouds!" Jean Luc's father shot back. "De what?" The kings astronomer asked in genuine confusion, and so Jean Luc's father drug the astronomer outside and showed him the sky. "Sacre blue!" Exclaimed the kings astronomer. "Ow ees eet I ave never seen dis before?" Jean Luc's father responded: "Probably because your fadder never let you lie about and stare at the sky." The kings astronomer nodded his head solemnly and agreed with some shame. Then the astronomer patted Jean Luc's father on the back and left to inform the king.
Years later it was Marco Polo, known for the new and exotic prizes he brought back form China, who introduced clouds to Kublai Kahn. This is why Kublai Kahn gave Marco Polo all that macaroni. Later when Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue and came to the New World, he thought he would be giving the natives a gift by pointing out the clouds, but it seems the natives all ready knew about clouds and taught Columbus the fun and exciting game of finding clouds that look like animals. Columbus, while enjoying the game immensely was disappointed to find that what he thought was strictly a European discovery to be more universal. In fact, given this, it puts Jean Luc's discovery into question, and it very well may have been Dances with Two Feathers or Smiles with a Fist who first discovered clouds. But, as far as history is concerned, it was Jean Luc Gaspar du Fondu Flaubert.
What does beat until fluffy mean?
"Beat until fluffy" typically refers to mixing ingredients together (such as butter and sugar) until the mixture becomes light and airy in texture. This process incorporates air into the mixture, resulting in a lighter and fluffier final product, such as for frosting or batter. Beat with an electric mixer on medium-high speed for a few minutes until the desired consistency is achieved.
Is cumulus short for cumulonimbus?
No.
Cumulus clouds are the fairly small, puffy white clouds that usually come with nice weather.
Cumulonimbus clouds are enormous towering clouds often called thunderheads as it is these clouds that become thunderstorms.
What type of cloud are known as thunderheads and why do somepeople call them that?
Thunderheads are a type of cumulonimbus cloud, characterized by their towering height and flattened appearance at the top. They are associated with thunderstorms due to their ability to produce intense atmospheric instability, leading to lightning, thunder, heavy rain, and sometimes severe weather conditions. The term "thunderhead" is derived from the thunderous noises frequently heard during thunderstorms associated with these clouds.
Are clouds a liquid or gas or both?
Clouds are made up of very small droplets of water. Water vapour is invisible, a water vapour cloud could not be seen.
Clouds form when water vapor in the air cools and condenses into tiny water droplets or ice crystals around particles in the atmosphere, such as dust or pollution. The cooling of the air can be due to rising air currents, changes in temperature, or contact with a cold surface. These droplets or crystals join together to form clouds.
How does the oxygen in the air being replaced?
Oxygen in the air is continually replenished through photosynthesis, the process by which plants, algae, and some bacteria convert carbon dioxide and sunlight into oxygen. This process occurs in green plants during the daytime. Additionally, the natural movement of air, as well as weather patterns like wind and rain, help distribute and mix oxygen throughout the atmosphere.
You have only to look up into the sky to try your luck at weather forecasting. Clouds give us a clue about what is going on in our atmosphere and how the weather might change in the hours or even days to come. Each type of cloud forms in a different way, and each brings its own kind of weather.
Cool Condensation
Clouds are water. As you probably know, we can find water in three forms: liquid, solid and gas. Water as a gas is called water vapor. Clouds form when water vapor turns back into liquid water droplets. That is called condensation. It happens in one of two ways: when the air cools enough, or when enough water vapor is added to the air. You've seen the first process happen on a summer day as drops of water gather on the outside of a glass of ice tea. That's because the cold glass cools the air near it, causing the water vapor in the air to condense into liquid. Unlike the drops on the side of your glass though, the droplets of water in a cloud are so small that it takes about one million of them to form a single raindrop. Most clouds form this way, but the cooling comes not from ice in a glass, but as the air rises and cools high in the sky. Each tiny cloud droplet is light enough to float in the air, just as a little cloud floats out from your breath on a cold day.
Too Clean for Clouds?
Our air has to be just a little bit dirty for clouds to form. That's because water vapor needs a surface on which to condense. Fortunately, even the cleanest air has some microscopic particles of dust, smoke or salt for water droplets to cling to, so the air is rarely too clean for clouds to form.
Cloud Classifications
Meteorologists name clouds by how high in the sky they form and by their appearance. Most clouds have two parts to their name. Usually the first part of the name has to do with the height and the second part refers to the appearance.
If clouds form at the highest levels, they get the prefix "cirro" as the first part of their name. Middle clouds get the prefix "alto." Low clouds don't get a prefix.
There are two cloud appearance types: cumulus and stratus, which are also the basic names of the low clouds. Sometimes they appear higher in the atmosphere and get a combination name with a prefix. For example, middle cumulus clouds are called "altocumulus" and high stratus clouds are "cirrostratus." If a cloud produces rain or snow it gets either "nimbo" at the beginning or "nimbus" at the end.
Cumulus clouds are low individual billowy globs that are low, have flat bases and look a little like cauliflower. They are at least as tall as they are wide and form on sunny days from pockets of rising air. Their constantly changing outlines are fun to watch because they can take the shapes of almost anything, including animals and faces. Cumulus clouds usually signal fair weather. If they build into the middle or high part of the atmosphere they get the name cumulonimbus. A cumulonimbus cloud is tall, deep and dark and can bring lightning, heavy rain and even severe weather such as hail, damaging winds or tornadoes. It is a sign of rapidly rising and sinking air currents.
Stratus clouds are layered and cover most of the sky. They are much wider than they are tall. If you see them in broken or puffy layers, they are stratocumulus clouds. If you see them in thin high layers that turn the sky solid white, they're cirrostratus clouds. The tiny prisms of ice in a cirrostratus layer can bend the sun's light. As a result, often you can see a halo or veil of rainbow colors around the sun. When stratus clouds are very thick, they become dark nimbostratus clouds, which can produce rain, drizzle or snow.
Cirrus clouds are high and thin and made entirely of ice crystals. Forming above 20,000 feet in the atmosphere, they often look like wisps of white hair. Cirrus clouds, which are a sign of warm moist air rising up over cold air, are sometimes an early signal that thickening clouds could bring light rain or snow within one or two days.
Try to learn the names of the different clouds, and the next time you look up into the sky, take notice of what kind of clouds you see. And if you try, you might be able to guess what kind of weather they will bring
What is a description for a stratus cloud?
A stratus cloud is a low-level cloud that appears as a uniform gray layer with a flat, featureless shape. These clouds typically cover the sky like a blanket, leading to overcast conditions. Stratus clouds are often associated with light drizzle or mist.
What type of change is water vapor?
Evaporation is the part in the water cycle that water vapor is brought by.
The moisture content of air is typically measured using relative humidity, which describes how close the air is to being fully saturated with water vapor. High relative humidity indicates moist air, while low relative humidity indicates dry air.
Do tornadoes form in the same type of cloud that a thunderstorm does?
Yes, tornadoes typically form within a supercell thunderstorm. Supercells are large, rotating thunderstorms that have the ideal conditions for tornado formation, such as strong wind shear and instability in the atmosphere. Tornadoes can develop within the rotating updraft of a supercell.
Why does water eventually fall from clouds?
Water vapor in the atmosphere condenses into liquid water droplets as it cools and reaches saturation. When these droplets become large enough, they fall from clouds as precipitation such as rain or snow due to the force of gravity pulling them towards the Earth's surface.
Can warm air pressure weigh more than cold air pressure?
No, warm air and cold air exert different pressures due to their different densities, but the weight of a volume of air is determined by its mass. Therefore, a mass of warm air does not weigh more than a mass of cold air, assuming the volumes are the same.
What is the global wind pattern that brings weather in a west to east pattern in our country?
The global wind pattern that brings weather in a west to east pattern in the United States is the westerlies. The westerlies blow from west to east in the middle latitudes of the Earth's atmosphere, influencing weather systems and climate patterns in regions like North America.
HOW Do altostartus clouds form?
Altostratus is caused by a large air mass that is lifted then condensed, usually by an incoming frontal system and can be found over widespread areas. Altostratus clouds are potentially dangerous, because they can cause ice accretion on aircraft. Their altitude is from 6,500-20,000 feet (2,400-6,100 m). They are primarily composed of water droplets.
What are the two main substances used in cloud seeding?
The two main substances used in cloud seeding are silver iodide and potassium iodide. These substances work by providing a surface for water vapor to condense on, forming ice particles that can then grow and eventually fall as precipitation.
What are rain or storm clouds?
Rain clouds, also known as nimbostratus clouds, are low- to mid-level clouds that bring precipitation. Storm clouds, such as cumulonimbus clouds, are tall and dense clouds that can bring heavy rain, thunderstorms, lightning, and sometimes hail or even tornadoes. Both types of clouds are associated with weather systems that can produce significant precipitation and severe weather.
