One of the most unusual and beautiful phenomena of modern nature is clouds. Their appearance can be in completely different forms: lamb, stripes, feathers, blankets and so on. But few people know that such a specific form depends on how high a particular fluffy formation swims.
Clouds - what is it
Clouds are water raised by warm air from the surface of the Earth to higher layers of the atmosphere. But their creation requires microscopic particles of dust, salt or smoke. Droplets of water gather around them, forming a cloud. That is, in the absence of these, even air supersaturated with water cannot form a cloud.
Classification
Clouds can be characterized by the height of their location from the surface of the Earth:
- The lower tier (up to 2 km) - fog, layered, layered rain, layered cumulus, thunder.
- The middle tier (up to 7 km) is highly layered, high cumulus.
- The upper tier (up to 13 km) - Cirrus uncinus, Cirrostratus, Cirrus.
- Stratosphere (above 13 km) - pearlescent, silver.
A special place is occupied by convention clouds - cumulus and cumulonimbus. Their formation depends on the totality of certain conditions, when they coincide, these types of clouds arise:
- The temperature of the air saturated with water vapor rises, and it instantly rises.
- Under the influence of low temperatures of the troposphere, part of the formed cloud freezes, while the other stretches in the direction of air flows and changes its location.
- Over the next 30 minutes, rain, hail or thunderstorm begins.
Low clouds
Fog is the result of condensation of water vapor in the nearest atmosphere. As a result of this process, a veil is formed, resembling a gray cloud. It settles on the surface of the earth, surrounding people and all accessible objects.
When the fog rises above the surface of the earth, it is converted into layered clouds. These are dense formations that do not let in sunlight and give little precipitation.
In strong winds they can burst and become a strange kind of clouds in the sky, reminiscent of gray shreds with shabby edges.
Layered rain clouds are a type of layered species. Only those located one level higher and with a predominance of dark color.
They are popularly known as rainwater. When the sky is in the clouds of this type, you can soon expect the appearance of prolonged rain.
Stratocumulus clouds - the stage of transition of layered to cumulus clouds. During this period, they resemble a wavy dark mass with periodic gaps that let in sunlight. Such clouds form in the winter and do not bring any precipitation.
Thunderstorms - the popular name for cumulonimbus clouds. Their appearance is accompanied by a thunderstorm.
Mid clouds
This type includes high-layered and high-cumulus clouds. Highly layered - a light shroud through which the sun and moon are visible.
They can be converted into layered rain, differing from them in a darker color. This species often carries within it precipitation, which occurs under certain conditions.
Altocumulus clouds are the same cumulus, only located higher and having a more delicate structure. Their appearance resembles a spherical shape of lamb, snow or cotton wool. Often converted to cumulus type of clouds.
Interesting fact. Some high altitude clouds can be represented as waves intersecting each other. They are formed during the expulsion of warm air into the upper atmosphere. Therefore, the appearance of high altitude clouds means the next change in weather.
High clouds
Cirrocumulus clouds are the so-called lamb with brightly colored borders. Despite the gaps in which the sun's rays fall, they are composed of particles of ice and are harbingers of hot weather.
Cirrostratus clouds are their related species. A solid whitish veil, from where the Sun or Moon with a halo effect are clearly visible - characteristic circles around the stars.
Such clouds consist of pieces of ice, on the walls of which sunlight plays, creating a corresponding visual illusion. At the moment of temperature increase, the clouds are condensed. The number of ice particles is increasing. And the halo effect is gradually fading.
Cirrus clouds are thin white filamentous formations or shreds resembling cotton candy. There are several varieties of these threads: flocculent, filiform, dense, claw-shaped and tower-like.
These clouds lend themselves well to any direction of the wind, so they are often slanted in a certain direction. May form from the remnants of a cumulonimbus species.
Stratosphere clouds
Ordinary clouds appear a maximum of 18 km from the Earth’s surface, in the troposphere. But there are exceptions. And periodically, clouds of two rare species appear - mother-of-pearl and silver. Pearlescent occur at an altitude of up to 25 km.
The related silver clouds are located even higher - up to 80 km.
Convention clouds
To this type are cumulus and cumulonimbus. Cumulus - dense white clouds resembling towers and church domes in their outlines.
Despite their thickness, which can reach up to 5 km, they are torn under the influence of a strong wind. Formed in cold and neutral airflow, so with sudden changes in temperature can be converted to cumulonimbus.
Cumulonimbus - dense dark clouds located vertically and covering an area of up to 14 km. Their appearance means coming rainfall. Due to their impressive size, they are located in several layers of the atmosphere, so the lower part of the cloud consists of water, and the upper part consists of particles of ice.