A cumulonimbus cloud is a medium-altitude cumulonimbus cloud that is capable of precipitation but has not yet reached the tropopause, which is the stable height of the stratosphere at which cumulonimbus clouds form capillary cumulonimbus or cumulonimbus rootstocks.

What do cumulonimbus clouds represent?

Cumulonimbus clouds are associated with extreme weather, such as heavy downpours, Hail, lightning and even tornadoes…if there is thunder, lightning or hail, the cloud is a cumulonimbus, not a nimbus.

What kind of cloud is a cumulonimbus?

Cumulonimbus bases may extend for several kilometers and occupy low to medium elevations – formed at about 200 to 4,000 meters above sea level (700 to 10,000 feet). Peaks typically up to 12,000 m (39,000 ft) and in extreme cases up to 21,000 m (69,000 ft) or higher.

How to identify cumulonimbus clouds?

Characteristics of precipitation may help distinguish cumulonimbus from nimbus. If the precipitation is showers, or if accompanied by lightning, thunder, or hail, the cloud is a cumulonimbus. Some cumulonimbus clouds look almost identical to cumulus congestus.

What cloud can become a cumulonimbus?

When the top of a cumulus cloud resembles the head of a cauliflower, it is called cumulus congestus or towering cumulus.These clouds grow upward, and they can develop into a giant cumulonimbus, which is a thunderstorm cloud.

Time-lapse (4k) of intense convective cumulonimbus clouds (thunderstorms) over the Sandia Mountains

20 related questions found

What is the largest cloud ever recorded on Earth?

noctilucent cloud

• Noctilucent clouds or noctilucent clouds are faint cloud-like phenomena in Earth’s upper atmosphere. …
• They are the highest clouds in Earth’s atmosphere and are located in the mesosphere, about 76 to 85 kilometers (249,000 to 279,000 feet) above sea level.

What cloud lasts the longest?

Nimbus Brings continuous rain that lasts for several hours. These low-level clouds are filled with moisture. Cumulonimbus clouds are also known as thunderstorms.

What is the difference between cumulonimbus and nimbus?

this rain Those from these clouds tend to be heavier and shorter in duration. Hence, the term « cumulonimbus » is a type of rainfall that produces vertically developing clouds. … The word « nimbostratus » means the production of rain clouds from horizontally layered clouds.

What color are cumulonimbus clouds?

Their colors range from dark grey to light grey And can appear in rows, patches, or circular clumps with clear sky in between.

What does black cloud mean?

A: It looks dark or dark clouds may be those there’s a lot of rain in there And part of a thunderstorm, Mike Roberts added. « Generally, storm severity is related to cloud height, which is why dark clouds are often an indicator of severe weather.

What are the four types of clouds?

The four core types of cloud

• Ring. The Latin word « cirro » means curly hair. …
• accumulation form. Generally isolated clouds, they look like white fluffy cotton balls. …
• layered. From the Latin word for « layer », these clouds are usually wide and fairly widespread, looking like a blanket. …
• Nimbo form.

How long do cumulonimbus clouds last?

Rain from cumulonimbus clouds usually lasts only 20 minutes or less, but the rainfall itself tends to be very heavy. It can also lead to flash floods. Cumulonimbus clouds sometimes have bubble-like protrusions beneath them called mammatus or mammas.

What is a fluffy cloud called?

cumulus It looks like a fluffy white cotton ball in the sky. They are beautiful at sunset and their different sizes and shapes can make observing them fun!

What are cumulonimbus clouds like?

Cumulonimbus are large, tall clouds with a darker base that bring thunderstorms, The upper part of the cloud has a vague outline and may have a flat top called an anvilIn addition to thunderstorms, these clouds can also bring hail, tornadoes, and snowfall, which also form during hurricanes.

What does Cirrostratus do?

What is Cirrostratus?Cirrostratus is transparent high clouds, which covers a large swath of the sky. They sometimes create white or colored halos, spots or arcs around the sun or moon, a phenomenon known as halos.

What type of cloud is fog?

fog: layers stratus on or near the ground. Different types include radiation fog (which forms overnight and burns in the morning) and advective fog.

What kind of cloud do you need for lighting?

Lightning is usually caused by Cumulonimbuswhose base is usually 1-2 km (0.62-1.24 mi) above ground level and can reach a height of up to 15 km (9.3 mi) at the top.

How do you spot stratus clouds?

Stratus is a uniform gray cloud, often cover the sky. Usually no precipitation falls from stratus clouds, but they may drizzle. When dense fog « raises », the resulting clouds are low-level clouds.

Is thunder caused by clouds colliding together?

answer.Thunder is caused by the rapid expansion of air around the path a bolt of lightning…when the lightning connects from the cloud to the ground, the second lightning will return from the ground to the cloud, following the same path as the first lightning.

Which cloud is not a premium cloud?

Altostratus (5-13 km): cirrus, cirrus and cirrostratus. Mesostratus (2-7 km): Altocumulus, Altostratus and Nimbostratus. Low-level clouds (0-2 km): Stratus, cumulus, cumulonimbus, and stratocumulus.

How can I tell if a cloud is a mid-range cloud from its name?

The height of mesospheric clouds varies from 6000 meters to 2000 meters. How can you tell from their name that a cloud is the middle cloud? Intermediate clouds have the prefix alto in their names. . . Low clouds below 2000 meters.

What are high altitude clouds?

High-level clouds appear Above about 20,000 feet and is given the prefix « cirro ». Because of the cooler troposphere temperatures at these levels, clouds are mostly composed of ice crystals, and often appear thin, streaky, and white (though lower sun angles, such as near sunset, can create a range of colors on clouds).

Can you touch a cloud?

Unfortunately, it doesn’t feel like a cotton ball or marshmallow, but Most people have had technical exposure to the cloud before. If you want to touch the clouds in the air, the best way is to skydive or in a hot air balloon, although I don’t want to be stuck in the clouds in a hot air balloon.

What type of cloud doesn’t exist?

Lenticular cloud Shaped like a lens. Their shape may come from hilly terrain, or just the way air rises over flat terrain.

What type of cloud is the lowest?

10 Basic Types of Clouds

• Low-level clouds (cumulus, stratus, stratocumulus) below 6,500 feet (1,981 m)
• Mesospheric clouds (altocumulus, nimbus, altostratus) that form between 6,500 and 20,000 feet (1981–6,096 m)
• Altostratus clouds (cirrus, cirrostratus, cirrostratus) that form above 20,000 feet (6,096 m)