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3rd Grade Science
3.ESS2: Earth’s Systems
2) Associate major cloud types (cumulus, cumulonimbus, cirrus, stratus, nimbostratus) with weather
conditions.

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Watch this video to get an overview of all of the cloud types before we start the lesson!

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Appearance: individual, cauliflower-shaped, detached, cotton-like, and fluffy.

Cloud Altitude: between 1,000 and 5,000 ft.

Cloud Color: white to gray

Sky Cover: Mostly sunny to sunny

Precipitation Potential: Uncommon

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Check out this link to learn more about the characteristics and descriptions of a cumulus cloud!

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Learn About Cumulus Clouds: Low, Puffy, Fair-weather

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Get a description of cumulus clouds, including pictures and images of various cumulus characteristics, their altitude levels, and more.

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Check out this video to learn more about the weather associated with cumulus clouds.

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Weather Works: Why are cumulus clouds puffy?

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Altitude: 500-16,000 meters

Precipitation: Very common rain, snow, snow pellets or hail, heavy at times.

Appearance: icy, anvil-shaped top, high in the clouds in in towers or plumes, base of the cloud is flat.

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This website goes deeper into what the weather associated to the cumulonimbus clouds is.

Overview: heavy torrential downpours, hail storms, lightning and even tornadoes.

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Height of base: 1,100 - 6,500 ft

Shape: fibrous upper edges, anvil top

Latin: cumulus - heap; nimbus - rain cloud

Precipitation: heavy rain and thunderstorms

What are cumulonimbus clouds?

Cumulonimbus clouds are menacing looking multi-level clouds, extending high into the sky in towers or plumes. More commonly known as thunderclouds, cumulonimbus is the only cloud type that can produce hail, thunder and lightning. The base of the cloud is often flat, with a very dark wall-like feature hanging underneath, and may only lie a few hundred feet above the Earth's surface.

How do cumulonimbus clouds form?

Cumulonimbus clouds are born through convection, often growing from small cumulus clouds over a hot surface. They get taller and taller until they represent huge powerhouses, storing the same amount of energy as 10 Hiroshima-sized atom bombs. They can also form along cold fronts as a result of forced convection, where milder air is forced to rise over the incoming cold air.

What weather is associated with cumulonimbus clouds?

Cumulonimbus clouds are associated with extreme weather such as heavy torrential downpours, hail storms, lightning and even tornadoes. Individual cumulonimbus cells will usually dissipate within an hour once showers start falling, making for short-lived, heavy rain. However, multicell or supercell storms contain many cumulonimbus clouds and the intense rainfall may last much longer.

If there is thunder, lightning or hail, the cloud is a cumulonimbus, rather than nimbostratus.

How do we categorise cumulonimbus clouds?

Cumulonimbus clouds have 3 distinct 'species' which describe the appearance of the head of the cloud:

Cumulonimbus calvus - the top of the cumulonimbus is puffy, like a cumulus cloud. The water droplets at the top of the cloud tower have not frozen to become ice crystals.

Cumulonimbus capillatus - the top of the cloud is fibrous but relatively contained. Water droplets have started to freeze, usually indicating rain has begun or will begin soon.

Cumulonimbus incus - the top of the cloud is fibrous and anvil-shaped, as the cloud has continued to grow. If the cloud reaches the top of the troposphere and still wishes to grow, it must do so outwards, creating the picturesque anvil or 'incus'.

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Otherwise known as The King of Clouds, cumulonimbus clouds exist through the entire height of the troposphere, usually characterised by their icy, anvil-shaped top.

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Take a look at this video to learn more about cumulonimbus!

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Appearance: short, detached, hair-like, wispy with white strands.

Height of base: 20,000 - 40,000 ft

Precipitation: none

When the sun is setting or rising, they may take on the colors of the sunset.

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Watch this video to learn more about the weather associated with cirrus clouds!

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How do people predict the weather just by looking at cirrus clouds?

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This website will teach you more about all you need to know about cirrus clouds! Check it out!

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What are cirrus clouds?

Cirrus clouds are short, detached, hair-like clouds found at high altitudes. These delicate clouds are wispy, with a silky sheen, or look like tufts of hair. In the daytime, they are whiter than any other cloud in the sky. While the Sun is setting or rising, they may take on the colours of the sunset.

How do cirrus clouds form?

Cirrus clouds form from the ascent of dry air, making the small quantity of water vapour in the air undergo deposition into ice (to change from a gas directly into a solid). Cirrus is made up completely of ice crystals, which provides their white colour and form in a wide range of shapes and sizes.

Cirrus clouds can also form through contrails, the vapour trails left by planes as they fly through a dry upper troposphere. These streaks can spread out and become cirrus, cirrostratus and cirrocumulus.

What weather is associated with cirrus clouds?

They often form in advance of a warm front, where the air masses meet at high levels, indicating a change in the weather is on the way.

Technically these clouds produce precipitation but it never reaches the ground. Instead, it re-evaporates, creating virga clouds.

How do we categorise cirrus clouds?

Cirrus clouds have five defined 'species';

Cirrus fibratus - Thin and fibrous, cirrus fibratus are often aligned with the high altitude wind direction, making for white parallel stripes which streak across the sky. These are the most common type of cirrus cloud

Cirrus uncinus - With its trademark hook shape, cirrus uncinus is famous for looking like a horse's tail. These wispy streaks of cirrus cannot be seen without a characteristic 'flick' at the end of its tail

Cirrus spissatus - These clouds sit right at the top of the troposphere. A thick, dense cirrus layer that dominates much of the sky above, often formed by passing warm fronts or the remnants of a cumulonimbus incus

Cirrus floccus - Ragged cirrus patches which are much larger than cirrocumulus floccus. These have a more cotton wool-like appearance than the rest of the cirrus family

Cirrus castellanus - More vertically developed than cirrus floccus, cirrus castellanus have turret-like tops and are taller than they are wide.

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All high clouds are a type of cirrus, a common cloud that can be seen at any time of the year.

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Appearance: Gray, featureless low-altitude cloud capable of ground contact

Altitude: 0-2,000 meters

Precipitation: Common drizzle, freezing drizzle, snow or snow grains.

Made up of: ice or ice crystals

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Take a look at this video to learn more about the weather associated with stratus clouds!

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Exploring the Nature of Wyoming | UWyo Extension

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This website will give you more cool facts about the stratus clouds!

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Definition: Gray, featureless low-altitude layer cloud capable of ground contact

Description & Characteristics. When you think of a cloudy, dreary day, you might have stratus clouds on your mind. Stratus clouds are blanket clouds that sit low to the ground, and on occasion, come in contact with the ground, better known as fog. If you live in a city with tall buildings, you might know stratus clouds by their ability to obscure the tops of buildings.

These clouds only have two species associated with them: nebulosus and fractus. Stratus nebulosus clouds are arguably the dullest of the clouds out there. They're featureless, lack detail, and probably wouldn't be considered picturesque (unless you're taking pictures in a graveyard, or if it's dissipating fog). Stratus fractus aren't exactly picturesque either, but at least there's a little detail, as these clouds are broken up shards of stratus clouds.

Depending on the conditions, stratus clouds can mask the sun ( opacus cloud variety), though sometimes the sun can be observed ( translucidus cloud variety). Additionally, you can see wavelike, undulating features in them ( undulatus cloud variety). Regardless, stratus clouds aren't the most memorable memorable cloud and often leave you wishing for sunnier days.

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Stratus Clouds: Low, Featureless Layer | WhatsThisCloud

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Learn about stratus clouds, including stratus cloud description and facts, images, how to best identify them, and their species, varieties, and features.

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This video will give you a better idea of what nimbostratus clouds look like!

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Nimbostratus clouds what do they look like

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Appearance: Dark and featureless layer cloud full of water vapor; responsible for rain and snow

Altitude: 500–5,500 meters

Precipitation: rain, ice pellets, or snow

Shape: Bands or areas of individual cells

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This website will give you all the stuff you need to know about nimbostratus clouds.

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Nimbostratus clouds are dark, grey, featureless layers of cloud, thick enough to block out the Sun and produce persistent rain.