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Every child has played the "cloud game," or the game that is made up of looking into the sky and attaching names and faces to clouds. But what are clouds really? In lore, they have been attributed to be everything from cotton balls to candy. In reality, they are really much different.
Clouds are nothing but water in the air. This water can take several forms, and it varies in formation according to height. Clouds under 6,500 feet are generally considered low, and are most often made of water. Clouds around 7,000 and 24,000 feet are considered mid-level clouds, and they are composed of mixtures of water and ice. Clouds above 20,000 feet are generally considered high-level clouds. These are the highest that clouds can go, and these are generally very wispy and long, made of ice.
Fog forms when water vapor condenses on the ground. It is basically water vapor that moves close to solid areas. Many people do not realize that when they are walking through fog, they are walking through a cloud! Stratus clouds are very gray and long and they usually resemble fog in the sky. They are very weak in terms of rain, because of their fog-like nature, but they can sometimes cause moisture and brief condensation to fall. They form when vertical air currents lift a thin layer of air to a point where condensation is possible. Cirrus clouds are the thin clouds that usually stretch from west to east across a sky. They resemble a beard, and many ancients thought they were the hair of deities in the sky. These clouds always form above 18,000 feet, and are non-rain in nature. Cumulus clouds form when strong air currents point upwards. These look like cotton balls, and have flat bottoms. These clouds form pretty low-from 5,000 to 6,000 fee up, and are relatively gentle. However, they are also the clouds of thunderstorms. Cumulus clouds, especially towering cumulus (thunderstorm clouds) can reach all the way up to 60,000 feet in great storms or unusual weather.
Sometimes the right combination of clouds and wind can cause threatening clouds and conditions. A hurricane is often characterized by a gigantic swirling of cumulus clouds that reach to high altitudes. A tornado is an example of clouds twisted to the shape of wind. While ominous clouds indicate bad weather, sometimes they are good. A mammatus cloud is formed by sinking air in a thunderstorm, and it signals the end of the storm.
Clouds influence the weather in many ways. We've all seen cloudy days that look dreary, and the sunny days with no clouds. Sometimes clouds enhance a day, sometimes they do not. A blanket of clouds at night helps to retain heat in the atmosphere. Rainy clouds cause rain, and excess water vapor from clouds is the basis of rainbows.
The weather channel is a great source of information about what the clouds are going to do next. Keep a lookout for them in the sky, and next time you see one, you'll know its real name and characteristics!
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