Weather and Clouds

 Meteorology: The study of the atmosphere that focuses on weather processes and forecasting. Copyright © 2010 Ryan P. Murphy

Refers to the state of the atmosphere at a specific time and place. Refers to the state of the atmosphere at a specific time and place. The one thing that you can talk to anybody about The one thing that you can talk to anybody about It affects your daily life- what to wear, what activities you will be able to do, etc.

How do we observe the weather?  Using our senses  Using instruments

4 factors affect the weather of an area and how we measure them. 1.Temperature, the measure of the average amount of motion in particles.  Instrument: thermometer

 2. Air pressure the amount of force exerted on an area by the air molecules\  Instrument: barometer

3. Wind movement of air from an area of high pressure to an area of low pressure. Instrument: anemometer (speed) and wind vane (direction)

 4. Humidity: The amount of water vapor present in the air  Instrument: hygrometer

Clouds can play a role in helping forecasters predict changes in the weather.

What are clouds?  Masses of small water droplets or tiny ice crystals that float in the air.

How do clouds form?  They form as warm air rises upward, expands, and cools.  As the air cools, the water vapor condenses back into a liquid

Formation continued…  Water vapor forms tiny liquid droplets around small particles such as dust and salt.  These droplets of water are so small that they remain suspended in the air.  BILLIONS of these droplets form a cloud.

Clouds can form and un-form depending on moisture levels  nce/terc/content/visualizations/es1803/es18 03page01.cfm?chapter_no=visualization nce/terc/content/visualizations/es1803/es18 03page01.cfm?chapter_no=visualization nce/terc/content/visualizations/es1803/es18 03page01.cfm?chapter_no=visualization

Classifying Clouds  Clouds are classified mainly by their shape and height.  Shape and height vary with temperature, pressure, and the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere.

Shapes of Clouds Three main shapes are Stratus (layer/stretched out), Cumulus (puffy), and Cirrus (wispy).

Stratus –Form at low altitudes –Associated with fair weather, RAIN, or SNOW –When air is cooled to its dew point near the ground it forms a stratus cloud called FOG.

Cumulus  Masses of puffy, white clouds, often with flat bases. –They tower to great heights! –Associated with fair weather or thunderstorms –These are the type of clouds you make figures out of.

Cirrus  Appear fibrous, wispy, or curly. –They are high, thin, white, feathery clouds made of ice crystals. –Associated with fair, sunny weather, but they can sometimes indicate approaching storms.

Rain producing  Not all clouds bring rain  Clouds associated with rain or snow have the word “nimbus” attached to them  “nimbus” is Latin for “dark rain cloud”  Thunderstorms are produced in towering clouds called “cumulonimbus”

Height of clouds  Prefixes help us also determine other types of clouds. –Cirro = high clouds –Alto = middle level clouds –Strato = low elevation  Examples: Cirrocumulus: fluffy, high, cotton- type clouds  Cirrostratus: thin sheets, high whitish layers of clouds

Height of Clouds   Cirro- High   Alto – Middle   Strato- low

review  39M cloud formation review 39M 39M qeJodR_ZJFROtwcepa5LOsMcuEJWX XSeason2_2009/IDEX205/IDEX205CloudinaBot tleLesson.pdf cloud in a bottle has them compare a bottle with smoke added and one without showing the cloud needs the smoke to form

GUESS the CLOUD!

Cirrus (high wispy)

Cirrocumulus (high and puffy)

Cumulus (puffy)

Cumulonimbus (puffy and rainy)

Altostratus (middle stretched out)

Nimbostratus (low rain cloud)

Stratocumulus (low and puffy)

Stratus (stretched out cloud layer)

Altocumulus (middle level puffy)

Cirrostratus (high, wispy, stretched out)

Making your own clouds 

 A startled, ghostly figure stands and screams beneath a swirling, fire-red sky.  Edvard Munch’s painting The Scream is one of the most iconic images from art.  Its haunting sky was a real meteorological phenomenon.

 In 1883, the eruption of the volcano Krakatoa (Krakatu) spewed ash into the atmosphere.  Dust and ash in the stratosphere interfered with sunlight and created dramatic sunsets as far away as Northern Europe and the United States one of which was depicted in The Scream.

Weather inspired music  weather weather weather  songs_with_weather_conditions_in_the_title.php songs_with_weather_conditions_in_the_title.php songs_with_weather_conditions_in_the_title.php

 n5tU n5tU n5tU  What are weather fronts – HUI#t=17 HUI#t=17https:// HUI#t=17 –Reading a weather map: Y Y Y ure=autoplay&list=EC77ECE976316E5992&playnext =1 Simple thermometer/barometer lab