Cumulonimbus
(from Latin cumulus, “heaped” and nimbus, “rainstorm”) is a dense, towering vertical cloud, forming from water vapor carried by powerful upward air currents. If observed during a storm, these clouds may be referred to as thunderheads.
What are dark stormy clouds called?
The Latin word
nimbus
means “dark cloud” or “rain storm,” and meteorologists use it to classify two of the major types of rain-bearing clouds: nimbostratus, layered rain clouds that don’t produce lightning, and cumulonimbus, deep cumulus clouds generating lightning, thunder and heavy downpours.
What is the rarest cloud?
Kelvin Helmholtz Waves
are perhaps the rarest cloud formation of all. Rumored to be the inspiration for Van Gogh’s masterpiece “Starry Night”, they are incredibly distinctive. They are mainly associated with cirrus, altocumulus, and stratus clouds over 5,000m.
What is the biggest type of cloud?
Cirrus clouds
are the highest of all clouds and are composed entirely of ice crystals. Cirrus clouds are precipitating clouds, although the ice crystals evaporate high above the earth’s surface.
What are GREY storm 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.
Why do clouds turn GREY?
When clouds are thin, they let a large portion of the light through and appear white. But like any objects that transmit light, the thicker they are, the less light makes it through. As
their thickness increases
, the bottoms of clouds look darker but still scatter all colors. We perceive this as gray.
What are the 4 major types of clouds?
- Cirro-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 do black clouds mean?
A: Very dark looking or black clouds are probably those
that contain a lot of rain in them
and part of a thunderstorm, McRoberts adds. “In general, the severity of a storm is related to cloud height, which is why dark clouds are usually an indicator of bad weather.
What is the most beautiful type of cloud?
Nacreous or mother-of-pearl clouds
, spotted over Kells, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The mother-of-pearl colours of the stratospheric nacreous clouds make them one of the most beautiful formations.
Why does the sky turn green during a tornado?
The “greenage” or green color in storms does not mean a tornado is coming. The green color does
signify the storm is severe though
. The color is from the water droplets suspended in the storm, absorbing red sunlight and radiating green frequencies.
Can we touch clouds?
Unfortunately, it does not feel like cotton balls or cotton candy, but
most people have technically touched a cloud before
. If you wanted to touch an airborne cloud, the best way to do this is either skydiving or in a hot air balloon, though I would not want to be stuck in a cloud while in a hot air balloon.
What are the lowest clouds called?
- Stratocumulus.
- Stratus.
- Cumulus.
- Cumulonimbus.
Is fog a cloud?
Fog is
a cloud that touches the ground
. … Fog shows up when water vapor, or water in its gaseous form, condenses. During condensation, molecules of water vapor combine to make tiny liquid water droplets that hang in the air. You can see fog because of these tiny water droplets.
How are clouds named?
According to his system, clouds are
given Latin names corresponding to their appearance — layered or convective— and their altitude
. … These clouds look lumpy and piled up, like a cauliflower. Convective cloud types are indicated by the root word cumulo, which means “heap” in Latin.
What do GREY clouds symbolize?
gray clouds represent
bad times or difficulties that you are going through in your life
. Since a cloud exists up in the sky and far above reach, it represents higher self of the dreamer. Something terrible may take place in your life.
Why are skies GREY in winter?
This
temperature inversion of relative warmer air
in the middle level can stick around for days at a time because of the lower angle of sun in the winter. Less sunlight decreases the chances of the surface heating up to balance out the vertical gradient of temperatures.
