What are Clouds?
Clouds are made up of tiny drops of water or ice crystals.
They form when warm air picks up water vapour from the land or sea and carries
it into the sky turning it into water droplets or ice crystals!
The study of clouds is called Nephology.
Let’s learn more!
There are lots of ways to describe clouds but they are
usually named based on their height in the sky, their shape or the weather they
can bring!
- If a cloud name starts with “cirr-” then you know it must form very high in the sky (over 20,000
feet).
- If a cloud name has “Alto”-
in it then it is in the middle section of the sky (between 6,500 and 20,000
feet).
- Clouds with “Strato-”
in the name are found in the lowest part of the sky (below 6,500 feet).
The clouds that are really high in the sky are mainly made
up of ice crystals as the air is so cold.
Clouds at ground level are called “fog”.
Did you know…all clouds are white but can appear grey or dark when seen
from below? This may be due to the amount of water they contain and shadowing by
clouds above them.
Clouds named according to their shape will contain one of
these Latin words in their name...
- “Cumulus” - heap
- “Stratus” - layer
- “Cirrus”
- curl of hair
Therefore a cloud named
Altostratus would mean a cloud that
forms in layers and sits between 6,500 and 20,000 feet above land.
Did you know... other planets contain clouds made up of
chemicals other than water? Venus has clouds made up of sulphuric acid,
chlorine and flouride. Neptune is covered by bright blue methane clouds!
The latin word “Nimbus” is used to name rain clouds!
Clouds called
Cumulonimbus are often referred to as thunder
clouds as they usually bring thunder storms!
Cumulonimbus clouds are the tallest of all the clouds.
Cumulonimbus looks a bit like a giant cauliflower in the
sky!
Did you know... a sinlge cloud can hold billions of pounds of water?
Clouds are carried along by the wind and can often travel quite fast;
Thunder clouds (Cumulonimbus) usually travel about 64 kilometres per hour (kph). The highest clouds (above 20,000 feet) can reach speeds of over 160 kph!
An experiment to try at home:
Make a cloud in a bottle!
You will need... an empty 2 Litre plastic bottle, warm water
and a match.
What to do... Fill the plastic bottle one third full
with warm water. Put the cap back on and
squeeze and then release the bottle.
Nothing happens. Ask an adult to light the match and put it into the
bottle. Replace the cap quickly. Try squeezing and releasing the bottle
again. What happens this time?
So what is happening?... Once the match has been added to the bottle a cloud forms
when you squeeze and then release the bottle (if you squeeze again the cloud
dissapears and reappears when you release).
To make a cloud you need water vapour, small particles (like the smoke)
and a decrease in air pressure.
Labels: #funfriday, alto, altostratus, cirrus, cloud in a bottle, Cumulonimbus, cumulus, Dr. How's Science Wows, Dr. Naomi Lavelle, experiment, fog, kids, nephology, nimbus, science, strato
