When warm air rises from the ground, it carries water vapor with it. When the water vapor meets the cold air found high in the sky, the gas condenses to liquid and forms cumulus clouds. While these fluffy-white clouds look like soft pillows of cotton, they are actually composed of small water droplets.
What does it mean when the clouds are flat on the bottom?
A: Often low clouds, like stratus and cumulus, appear to have flat bases. These clouds form as air near the ground is rising. ... Meteorologists call this altitude the lifting condensation level (or LCL) because it is the height at which water vapor in rising air starts condensing to form cloud drops.
Why are clouds flat on bottom and fluffy on top?
During the day the sun warms the ground, which then radiates heat, causing air near the ground to warm and rise. ... As the air continues to rise, that first chunk of cloud gets pushed up as more cloud forms beneath , resulting in a cloud that’s puffy on top but flat on the bottom.
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 is the rarest type of cloud?
Nacreous clouds are some of the rarest clouds on the planet. They are a form of polar stratospheric cloud, which is a main culprit in chemical destruction of the ozone layer.
Are clouds light and fluffy?
“When we see grey clouds, they have a large concentration of water droplets,” says Associate Professor Lane. ... “Although most clouds look light and fluffy , they are in fact highly turbulent with very strong air currents within them and an enormous mass of suspended water,” he says.
Are clouds really white?
Clouds are white because light from the Sun is white . But in a cloud, sunlight is scattered by much larger water droplets. ... These scatter all colours almost equally meaning that the sunlight continues to remain white and so making the clouds appear white against the background of the blue sky.
Why do clouds look like fluffy cotton balls?
Puffy “balls of cotton”:
Cumulus clouds that are flatter tend to be found when updrafts are weak , meaning clouds are unable to grow very tall. When the tops of cumulus clouds are puffy and cauliflower-like, be on the lookout for rain showers. When updrafts are strong, cumulus clouds can grow quickly.
Can u sit on a cloud?
Nope. You can’t sit on a cloud, because there’s really nothing there . What you think of as a cloud is basically just air. It looks the way it looks because there are many, many, many tiny droplets of water suspended in the air, which refract the light and make them look white (or gray, depending on conditions).
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.
What do black clouds symbolize?
White clouds are associated with happy days, while dark clouds are often used by movie-makers and in our dreamscapes to indicate a more ominous feeling . ... White is associated with purity, innocence and protection.
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.
What is the scariest cloud?
Scud clouds are cloud fragments that seem to hang much lower in the sky than the rest of the clouds and they can even form a point that makes them look just like a tornado. In actuality, these clouds are just smaller bits of condensation that aren’t attached to the higher layers of thick cumulonimbus storm clouds.
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.
What is a fluffy cloud called?
Cumulus . Cumulus clouds look like fluffy, white cotton balls in the sky.
How can you tell if it will rain or not?
Look at the shape of the clouds .
The types of clouds in the sky can tell you a lot about the weather. In general, clouds that are white and high indicate good weather, and clouds that are dark and low mean rain or storms are on the way. White, wispy clouds usually mean that the weather will be clear.
