Clouds
A brief guide on clouds types,
cloud observing, and time.
Have you ever looked at clouds
and wondered if they had
names?
• Luke Howard did over
•
•
200 years ago.
He decided that
clouds could be
classified into three
main categories.
He used Latin to
name the clouds.
Three main cloud types
• Cirrus (Latin for Curl)
– means hair and describes wispy looking clouds. This term is also
used to describe high level clouds
•Cumulus (Latin for heap)
–means pile and describes heaped, lumpy clouds
•Stratus (Latin for layer)
–means layer and describes clouds that
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form in sheets and do not have any
unique features
(Wispy, Horse tail)
Cirrus
Stratus
Cumulus
(Layered, Flat)
(Cotton Ball)
You’ve learned the basic types
of clouds…let’s get go on to
deluxe clouds.
• Nimbus (Latin for Rain)
– use this term only when a cloud actually produces
precipitation
•Alto
– describes mid-level clouds
Pictures from http://asd-www.larc.nasa.gov/SCOOL/
Let’s combine names.
• Cirrocumulus
– Can best be described
as a high cloud that
resembles fish scales
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(Wispy, Horse tail)
Cirrus
Cirrocumulus
(Fish Scale)
Stratus
Cumulus
(Layered, Flat)
(Cotton Ball)
Let’s combine names.
• Stratocumulus
– Best described as a
cloud accident or puffy
bottoms
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(Wispy, Horse tail)
Cirrus
Cirrocumulus
(Fish Scale)
Stratus
Stratocumulus
Cumulus
(Layered, Flat)
(Puffy bottoms, cloud accident)
(Cotton Ball)
Let’s combine names.
• Nimbostratus
– Looks like a stratus
cloud but it is
producing precipitation
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(Wispy, Horse tail)
Cirrus
Cirrocumulus
Stratus
(Layered, Flat)
Stratocumulus
(Puffy bottoms, cloud accident)
Nimbostratus
(low blanket with lots of rain)
(Fish Scale)
Cumulus
(Cotton Ball)
Let’s combine names.
• Altocumulus
– Mid-level cloud
– Described as flocks of
sheep or streets of
clouds
•Altostratus
–Mid-level cloud
–Light gray layer
–Light behind the clouds
Pictures from http://asd-www.larc.nasa.gov/SCOOL/
(Wispy, Horse tail)
Cirrus
Cirrocumulus
Altostratus
(Fish Scale)
Altocumulus
(Light grey, light behind clouds)
(Streets of clouds,
flock of sheep)
Stratus
(Layered, Flat)
Nimbostratus
(low blanket with lots of rain)
Stratocumulus
(Puffy bottoms, cloud accident)
Cumulus
(Cotton Ball)
Let’s combine names.
•Cirrostratus
–High-level cloud
–Thin veil of clouds
–Produces a sun or
moon halo
(Wispy, Horse tail)
Cirrus
Cirrostratus
Cirrocumulus
(Fish Scale)
(Thin, veil,sun/moon halo)
Altostratus
Altocumulus
(Light grey, light behind clouds)
Stratus
(Layered, Flat)
(Streets of clouds, flock of shee
Stratocumulus
(Puffy bottoms, cloud accident)
Nimbostratus
(low blanket with lots of rain)
Cumulus
(Cotton Ball)
Let’s combine names.
•Cumulonimbus
•Thunderclouds
•Storm makers
•Produce lightening and
thunder
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(Wispy, Horse tail)
Cirrus
Cirrostratus
Cirrocumulus
(Fish Scale)
(Thin, veil,sun/moon halo)
Altostratus
Altocumulus
(Light grey, light behind clouds)
Stratus
(Layered, Flat)
(Streets of clouds, flock of sheep)
Stratocumulus
(Puffy bottoms, cloud accident)
Cumulus
(Cotton Ball)
Nimbostratus
Cumulonimbus
(low blanket with lots of rain)
(Thunderstorm clouds)
Man-made clouds•
Contrails
– Short for condensation
trails.
– Made by airplanes
– 3 types
• Short lived
• Persistent
• Persistent
Spreading
Pictures from http://asd-www.larc.nasa.gov/SCOOL/
(Wispy, Horse tail)
Cirrostratus
(Thin, veil,sun/moon halo)
Cirrus
Cirrocumulus
(Fish Scale)
Altocumulus
Altostratus
(Streets of clouds, flock of sheep)
(Light grey, light behind clouds)
Stratus
(Layered, Flat)
Nimbostratus
Cumulus
Stratocumulus
(Puffy bottoms, cloud accident)
ow blanket with lots of rain)
Short-lived
Persistent
Persistent Spreading
Contrails
(Cotton Ball)
Cumulonimbus
(Thunderstorm clouds)
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10
1
Imagine
2
this
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4
5
picture
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6
7
8
represents
a certain
number of
9
clouds in
10
the sky !
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1
2
3
4
5
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9
10
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
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Be ready
with an
answer in
5 seconds !
Write your guess
down your white
board and hold it up
high.
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LET’S OBSERVE!
Let’s make an
observation
on what we
see on this
beautiful day!
What cloud
types are
present?
What’s the
percentage of
cloud cover?
How much
light
penetrates
the clouds?
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Time Terms
• Local Standard Time
– The time established for a region by law, or general use it's the time you see on a correctly set clock, if you're not
in daylight savings time (summer)
Time Terms
• 24 hour Time or Military Time
– In military time, the hours are numbered from
00 to 23.
– Under this system, midnight is 00, 1 a.m. is 01,
1 p.m. is 13, and so on.
• Try it: 2:30 pm
• An event occurs on Wednesday at 0001 PST. This
translates to one minute past midnight PST on
Wednesday morning.
• 6:11 a.m. is the same as 0611 (or 06:11) military
time.
• 13:17:42 military time is the same as forty-two
seconds past 1:17 in the afternoon.
Time Terms
• Universal Time or What time is it in
Greenwich, England
– Standard time at longitude = 0 (the
longitude line which goes through
Greenwich, England) which is used as a
standard around the world to assist in
synchronizing data collection.
Time Terms
• Universal Time Offset and Conversion
• Current Universal Time (UT): 21:04
1. Write down current local time: ___h ___m
2.
3.
Add 7 hours (We are 7 hours behind UT)
____h ____ m
Convert to 24 hour clock:
___h ___m