Study Guide for the Cloud Quiz
What are clouds?
 Clouds are millions of tiny water droplets held suspended together in the air.
 Clouds are physically composed of water in the form of a liquid and/or a solid.
 Most clouds are found in the troposphere layer of the atmosphere.
 As altitude increases the temperature decreases. Air cools as it rises in the
troposphere.
 Meteorologists classify clouds by their shapes and the heights at which they form.
There are three major types of clouds.
Cirrus Clouds
 Cirrus clouds are thin, wispy, feathery clouds.
 Cirrus clouds are made up of ice crystals.
 Cirrus clouds are fair weather clouds.
Cumulus Clouds
 Cumulus clouds are white, puffy clouds.
 Cumulus clouds are fair weather clouds.
Stratus Clouds
 Stratus clouds are flat layers of gray clouds.
 Stratus clouds produce a steady drizzle of rain or snow.
 Fog is a stratus cloud that is very close to the ground.
There are other cloud types.
Cumulonimbus Clouds
 Cumulonimbus clouds are large puffy clouds that cause thunderstorms.
 Tornados are a type of storm that can pick up objects and are associated with
cumulonimbus clouds.
 Hail only forms in cumulonimbus clouds.
 Cumulonimbus clouds extend all the way through the low, middle, and high layers of
the troposphere.
How do clouds form?
Step 1- Sunlight warms the surface and evaporates the
ground's water
Step 2- Warm, moist air builds up in the lower troposphere
Step 3- Rising air currents organize into thermals (columns of
rising air)
Step 4- Water vapor in rising air condenses to form cloud water
Cirrostratus
Cirrus
Cirrocumulus
Altocumulus
Altostratus
Cumulonimbus
Stratus
Nimbostratus
Cumulus
Steps of the Water Cycle
1. Water is forming precipitation that is falling to the earth.
2. Water is running off the side of the mountain into the lake.
3. Water is evaporating to form clouds.
4. Water vapor is condensing to form clouds.
5. The sun is heating the air and water molecules making the molecules move faster.
Remember to always study all of the notes in your Interactive Notebook!