Thus, the 10 types are:
- Low-level clouds (cumulus, stratus, stratocumulus) that lie below 6,500 feet (1,981 m)
- Middle clouds (altocumulus, nimbostratus, altostratus) that form between 6,500 and 20,000 feet (1981–6,096 m)
- High-level clouds (cirrus, cirrocumulus, cirrostratus) that form above 20,000 feet (6,096 m)
- Cumulonimbus, which tower across the low, middle, and upper atmosphere
What are the names of clouds in each cloud level?
- Stratus/strato : flat/layered and smooth
- Cumulus/cumulo : heaped up/puffy, like cauliflower
- Cirrus/cirro : high up/wispy
- Alto : medium level
- Nimbus/Nimbo : rain-bearing cloud
Do clouds have different names?
Well, clouds have names, too! Some cloud names are cirrus, cumulus, and stratus. Explain to your students the use of the words “names” and “groups” here. “Names” can be for individual things or for groups of things (e.g., a cirrus cloud may be one individual cloud or it may refer to that group of cloud types.
What indicates high level clouds?
} High-level clouds occur above about 20,000 feet and are given the prefix "cirro-". Due to cold tropospheric temperatures at these levels, the clouds primarily are composed of ice crystals, and often appear thin, streaky, and white (although a low sun angle, e.g., near sunset, can create an array of color on the clouds).
Why do clouds have names?
Clouds are named for their shape and how high they are in. the sky. This list below will help you figure out what the cloud. shapes mean: “Cumulus” means “heap” or clouds that are piled up and tall. “Stratus” means “layer” or clouds that forms streaks or layers because of windy weather up where the clouds are.
What are 7 types of clouds?
Summary: What Are the Types of Clouds?Altocumulus.Altostratus.Cirrocumulus.Cirrostratus.Cirrus.Cumulonimbus.Cumulus.Nimbostratus.More items...•
What are the 4 levels of clouds?
The Four Core Types of CloudsCirro-form. The Latin word 'cirro' means curl of hair. ... Cumulo-form. Generally detached clouds, they look like white fluffy cotton balls. ... Strato-form. From the Latin word for 'layer' these clouds are usually broad and fairly wide spread appearing like a blanket. ... Nimbo-form.
What are the 3 height levels for clouds?
In addition to standardizing the genus-species system, the WMO also classified clouds by altitude and divided the troposphere into 3 levels: Low-level Clouds: < 6,500 ft. Mid-level Clouds: 6,500 to 23,000 ft. High-level Clouds: 16,500 to 45,000 ft.
What are the 10 major clouds?
The foundation consists of 10 major cloud types. In addition to cirrus, stratus, cumulus, and nimbus clouds, there are cirrostratus, cirrocumulus, altostratus, altocumulus, stratocumulus, nimbostratus, and cumulonimbus clouds.
What are the 6 main cloud types?
Names for cloudsStratus/strato: flat/layered and smooth.Cumulus/cumulo: heaped up/puffy, like cauliflower.Cirrus/cirro: high up/wispy.Alto: medium level.Nimbus/Nimbo: rain-bearing cloud.
What is the highest level a cloud can form?
Noctilucent. Very thin cloud composed of water ice. These clouds are the highest clouds in the atmosphere, located in the mesosphere at an altitude of approximately 280,000ft. They are only visible when illuminated by light from below after the sun has gone below the horizon.
What is the biggest cloud?
Amazon Web Services (AWS), the cloud computing service of Amazon.com, is the largest cloud service provider globally. From its data centers, the business provides over 200 fully featured services including compute, storage, and database.
What are dark clouds called?
Nimbostratus clouds are dark, gray clouds that seem to fade into falling rain or snow. They are so thick that they often blot out the sunlight.
What is a rain cloud called?
Clouds that produce rain and snow fall into this category. ("Nimbus" comes from the Latin word for "rain.") Two examples are the nimbostratus or cumulonimbus clouds. Nimbostratus clouds bring continuous precipitation that can last for many hours.
What is the most common type of high clouds?
Cirrus clouds are the most common type of high level clouds and appear thin and whispy. Cirrus clouds generally move from west to east, indicating the prevailing wind at their altitude. They usually indicate fair weather for the next day or two.
What are the 12 new clouds?
In all, there are about a hundred combinations.The Volutus. Stratocumulus volutus © Frank Le Blancq.Asperitas. Stratocumulus stratiformis opacus asperitas © Kairo Kiitsak.The Cavum. ... The Cauda (appendix cloud) ... The Fluctus (or Kelvin-Helmholz wave) ... Murus (cloud-wall) ... The Flumen. ... The cataractagenitus.More items...•
What is the weirdest cloud?
Asperitas Clouds These clouds look like violent ocean waves. They form when warm and cold air meet, creating turbulence. Despite their ominous appearance, these clouds do not usually signal inclement weather. Read more about asperitas clouds here.
What are the 4 low level clouds?
Low-Level Clouds. Cumulus (Cu), Stratocumulus (Sc), Stratus (St), and Cumulonimbus (Cb) are low clouds composed of water droplets.
What are the 4 families of clouds?
For identification purposes, you need be con- cerned only with the more basic cloud types, which are divided into four "families." The families are: high clouds, middle clouds, low clouds, and clouds with extensive vertical development.
What are the 4 different types of clouds and their features?
Cirrus - Cirrus clouds are high level clouds that are thin and wispy. ... Cirrocumulus - These are high clouds that look like tiny cotton balls bunched together.Cirrostratus - High, flat clouds that might cover the sky making it appear overcast. ... Altostratus - Medium level clouds that form a dark gray covering.More items...
What is a cloud name 4 types of clouds and explain all?
Often, you'll some places simply class clouds as cirrus, stratus, and cumulus because these clouds are the most common and representative for each altitude class. High-level clouds (5-13 km): cirrocumulus, cirrus, and cirrostratus. Mid-level clouds (2-7 km): altocumulus, altostratus, and nimbostratus.
What type of clouds are thicker?
Type 2 cirrus are thicker, and often appear as white puffs or sheaves, sometimes with wispy edges. They indicate that there is deep moisture high in the atmosphere. Type 3 cirrus clouds are usually very thick, and result when CB clouds produce anvil-shaped tops, then dissipate, leaving the anvils behind.
What type of clouds are cirrocumulus?
Cirrocumulus clouds often appear as thin white areas of ripples or small puffs. They can resemble AC clouds, except that the individual cloud elements (puffs) are much smaller. The pictures below both show type 9 cirrocumulus (smaller elements) above (mid-cloud) type 7 AC (larger elements). Cirrocumulus indicate an unstable layer high up in the atmosphere, but do not necessarily portend the approach of any significant weather.
What is a cirrostratus cloud?
Cirrostratus (CS) clouds var y in thickness, cover large areas, and are g enerally shapeless and diffuse except at their edges. Sometimes they are thick enough to hide the sun or moon, and other times are so thin that they are only visible because they change the sky color (as in the second photo below type 7 CS).
How high do cirrus clouds form?
Cirrus clouds form very high in the atmosphere, usually between 15,000 and 30,000 feet above ground, and occur year-round in the Keys. Type 1 cirrus are very thin and whispy, and are usually in the shape of strands and hooks, or looking like feathers or horse tails. They do not give any significant indication of approaching weather.
What does cirrus/CS mean?
They indicate a large area of moist air at high levels, and when thick are sometimes are associated with spreading from the tops of large storm complexes. Type 5 cirrus/CS are progressively invading the sky, but are still relatively distant because they extend less than 45 degrees above the horizon.
Can a CS cover the entire sky?
However, they cannot cover the entire sky, otherwise they are classified as type 7 CS. Type 7 (CS covering the entire sky): Type 7 CS are similar to type 5 and type 6, except that they cover the entire sky. Because of this, they can no longer be identified as "progressively invading".
Do CS type 8s cover the sky?
Type 8 CS do not cover the entire sky, but are also not progressively invading the sky. In other words, they are usually either moving by without getting closer, moving away, or dissipating.
Cirrus
All high clouds are a type of cirrus cloud, where cirrostratus and cirrocumulus clouds are simply different forms. Cirrus clouds are composed of ice crystals that provide them with their white colour.
Cirrostratus
Cirrostratus are found high up in the atmosphere and hence are composed of ice crystals. They appear like a thin, milky layer and when the sun shines through, a halo effect can be created. Cirrostratus clouds can often cover large areas of up to thousands of miles and be up to several thousand feet thick.
Cirrocumulus
Cirrocumulus appear as small, white, globular masses with a rippled appearance. This cloud type is found in the higher atmosphere, generally forming at an altitude between 16,000 and 30,000ft and is composed of ice crystals. Unlike the other high level cloud types, Cirrocumulus are always broken up into tiny elements or ripples.
What are the different types of clouds?
According to the World Meteorological Organization's International Cloud Atlas, more than 100 types of clouds exist. The many variations, however, can be grouped into one of 10 basic types depending on their general shape and height in the sky. Thus, the 10 types are: 1 Low-level clouds (cumulus, stratus, stratocumulus) that lie below 6,500 feet (1,981 m) 2 Middle clouds (altocumulus, nimbostratus, altostratus) that form between 6,500 and 20,000 feet (1981–6,096 m) 3 High-level clouds (cirrus, cirrocumulus, cirrostratus) that form above 20,000 feet (6,096 m) 4 Cumulonimbus, which tower across the low, middle, and upper atmosphere
What clouds cover the sky in a dark gray layer?
Nimbostratus. Charlotte Benvie/Getty Images. Nimbostratus clouds cover the sky in a dark gray layer. They can extend from the low and middle layers of the atmosphere and are thick enough to blot out the sun.
How do you tell if a cloud is cirrostratus?
Cirrostratus clouds are transparent, whitish clouds that veil or cover nearly the entire sky. A dead giveaway to distinguishing cirrostratus is to look for a "halo" (a ring or circle of light) around the sun or moon. The halo is formed by the refraction of the light on the ice crystals in the clouds, similarly to how sundogs form but in an entire circle rather than just on either side of the sun.
How to tell the difference between stratocumulus and altocumulus?
Besides altocumulus being higher up in the sky, another way to tell them apart is by the size of their individual cloud mounds. Place your hand up to the sky and in the direction of the cloud; if the mound is the size of your thumb, it's altocumulus. (If it's closer to fist-size, it's probably stratocumulus.)
What is a low, puffy, grayish or whitish cloud?
Stratocumulus. Danita Delimont/Getty Images. If you took an imaginary knife and spread cumulus clouds together across the sky but not into a smooth layer (like stratus), you'd get stratocumulus—these are low, puffy, grayish or whitish clouds that occur in patches with blue sky visible in between.
What is the symbol of clouds?
Cumulus clouds are the clouds you learned to draw at an early age and that serve as the symbol of all clouds (much like the snowflake symbolizes winter). Their tops are rounded, puffy, and a brilliant white when sunlit, while their bottoms are flat and relatively dark.
What is stratus cloud?
Stratus clouds hang low in the sky as a flat, featureless, uniform layer of grayish cloud. They resemble fog that hugs the horizon (instead of the ground).
What is the name of the cloud that covers the whole sky like a veil?
Cirrostratus. Cirrostratus clouds are thin, white clouds that cover the whole sky like a veil. These clouds are most commonly seen in the winter, and can cause the appearance of a halo around the sun or the moon. Weather prediction: Rain or snow will arrive within 24 hours!
What is a dark cloud that fades into falling rain?
Nimbostratus. Nimbostratus clouds are dark, gray clouds that seem to fade into falling rain or snow. They are so thick that they often blot out the sunlight. Weather prediction: Gloomy with continuous rain or snow.
What are Altocumulus clouds made of?
Altocumulus clouds have several patchy white or gray layers, and seem to be made up of many small rows of fluffy ripples. They are lower than cirrus clouds, but still quite high. They are made of liquid water, but they don’t often produce rain. Weather prediction: Fair.
What is a Cirrus cloud?
Cirrus. Cirrus clouds are delicate, feathery clouds that are made mostly of ice crystals. Their wispy shape comes from wind currents which twist and spread the ice crystals into strands. Weather prediction: A change is on its way!
What are clouds made of?
All clouds are made up of basically the same thing: water droplets or ice crystals that float in the sky. But all clouds look a little bit different from one another, and sometimes these differences can help us predict a change in the weather.
Why are clouds still clouds?
They are still clouds, though, because they are made of water droplets condensed from the water vapor in the exhaust of the jet engines. Weather prediction: Contrails can provide information about the layers of moisture in the sky.
How do clouds form?
They can also be formed by sea breezes and often appear as lines where two air masses meet.
