Clouds form when warm air rises and cools, reaching the dew point where water vapor condenses into liquid water or ice droplets. There are three main cloud types - cirrus, stratus, and cumulus - which are classified based on their altitude and appearance. Clouds can combine elements of these types and bring weather like rain or storms. Common cloud types include cumulonimbus thunderheads and nimbostratus rain clouds.

2. What are clouds?
• Clouds are water
droplets or ice
crystals that are in
the Earths
troposphere (the
bottom part of the
Earth's atmosphere)

3. Dew Point and Condensation
• Condensation- when
water vapor becomes a
liquid
• Dew point- temperature
where water vapor
condenses into a liquid.
• Clouds form when water
vapor sticks to dust
particles and condenses
in the air

4. How do clouds form?
• Clouds form when
the air rises.
• As air rises it cools.
• Cooler air cannot
hold as much water
vapor as warmer
air.
• As the temperature
reaches the dew
point, the water
vapor will condense
on dust particles.
• A cloud is formed!

5. What are the different types of
clouds?
• Clouds are classified by
their altitude and
appearance
• Each type of cloud
forms in a different way
and brings its own type
of weather
• There are 3 main forms
of clouds
• The main forms are,
cirrus, stratus,
cumulus

6. Cloud Prefixes
• Cirro: means wisp of
hair (highest clouds)
• Alto: means high
(name given to mid-
level clouds).
• Nimbo/nimbus: means
rain. The cloud can
make precipitation
• Cumulo: means heap.
(piled-up clouds)
• Strato: means layer
• There is no prefix for
low-altitude clouds

7. Cirrus
• Cirrus is Latin for
curl
• Cirrus clouds look
like curls of white
hair.
• Very high, made of
ice crystals
• Can indicate a
change in the
weather.

8. Stratus
• Stratus: Latin for
sheet or layer
• Stratus clouds look like
a gray, flat blanket
that covers the entire
sky.
• Look like fog that
does not reach the
ground.
• Usually no
precipitation, but
sometimes they may
drizzle.

9. Cumulus
• In Latin cumulus
means heap
• Cumulus clouds look
like a heap of whipped
cream or cotton balls
• Forms on sunny days
• Signal good weather
• If it gets higher it can
cause bad weather

10. Common Clouds
• Most clouds are a
mixture of the three
main clouds at different
altitudes
• Some common clouds
are:
• Cumulo-nimbus
• Cirro-stratus
• Cirro-cumulus
• Alto-stratus
• Strato-cumulus
• Nimbo-stratus
• Fog

12. Cumulonimbus
• thunderheads
• thunderstorm clouds
that can grow very
high (over 40,000
feet)
• Tremendous amounts
of energy are
released by the
condensation of
water vapor inside
this cloud.
• Lightning, thunder,
and even violent
tornadoes often
occur with this cloud.

13. Cirrostratus
• Cirrostratus are sheet-
like, high-level clouds
made of ice crystals.
• Though cirrostratus can
cover the entire sky
and be up to several
thousand feet thick,
they are relatively
transparent, as the
sun or the moon can
often be seen through
them.

14. Cirrocumulus
• appear as small,
rounded white puffs.
• The small ripples in
these clouds
resemble the scales
of a fish.
• This sky is sometimes
referred to as a
"mackerel sky."

15. Altostratus
• Gray or blue-gray middle
level clouds composed of
ice crystals and water
droplets.
• Often cover the entire
sky.
• In the thinner areas of the
cloud, the sun may be
dimly visible as a round
disk.
• Altostratus clouds often
form ahead of storms
that will produce
continuous precipitation.

16. Stratocumulus
• Usually dark, heavy
looking clouds.
• Rain is likely.

17. Nimbostratus
• Uniform dark flat
low featureless
clouds that make
precipitation.

18. Fog
• Very low stratus
cloud
• In contact with
ground

19. Bibliography
• http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subject
s/astronomy/planets/earth/clouds/
• http://wxdude.com/page9.html
• Prentice Hall Earth Science Teacher
Edition
• Our Textbook
•