1. Clouds and Precipitation
Weather
Clouds and Precipitation

2. Have you ever just looked at clouds?
Why do we have clouds?
Why are there different shapes?
What can they tell us about the weather?

3. Take Good Notes!
There will be a quiz on this information

4. Understanding Clouds Clouds form as warm air is forced upward
As the air is forced upward, it expands and cools

5. Understanding Clouds
As the air cools, the relative humidity reaches 100%
For more information on Relative Humidity click ☼

6. Water vapor begins to condense in tiny drops around nuclei
Water vapor begins to condense in tiny drops around nuclei. Nuclei are small particles of dust, salt, and smoke in the atmosphere

7. Cloud Types
There are many different cloud types

8. Cloud Types
Can you think of the two main ways that clouds are classified?
Shape, Height, and sometimes Rain Capacity

9. By Shape! There are three main cloud types that are based on shape
Think you know any of them?
Stratus
Cumulus
Cirrus

10. Stratus Clouds Stratus clouds form a smooth, even sheet
They usually form at low altitudes

11. Stratus Clouds
When air is cooled and condenses near the ground, a stratus cloud know as _______ forms
Know the name?

12. FOG!

13. Cumulus Clouds
These are masses of puffy, white clouds, often with flat bases
They form when air currents rise

14. Cumulus Clouds
They can be associated with both fair weather and…….when they get really tall ___!

15. Thunderstorms!

16. Cirrus Clouds
Cirrus clouds are high, thin, white, feathery clouds containing ice crystals

17. Cirrus Clouds
Cirrus clouds are usually associated with fair weather, but they may indicate approaching storms

18. By Height
The prefix of cloud names can describe the height of cloud bases
Cirro: High clouds above 6000m

19. By Height Alto: Middle elevation clouds between 2000 to 6000m
Strato: Low level clouds below 2000m

20. Rain Clouds
Nimbus clouds are dark clouds associated with precipitation

21. Rain Clouds
When a nimbus cloud is also a towering cumulus cloud, it’s called a cumulonimbus cloud

22. Ready for a quick review?
1. Clouds can form when the relative humidity reaches ____%
2. In order for clouds to form, water vapor begins to condense around ____of dust, salt, and smoke

23. 3. Clouds are classified by ____ and____ and sometimes rain capacity
4. Puffy, white clouds are called?
5. Mid elevation clouds between 2000 and 6000m

24. Let’s see how you did!
100
Nuclei
Shape and height
Cumulus
Alto

25. Forms of Precipitation
Precipitation (pre-sip-uh-tay-shun) is any form of water that falls to the Earth's surface.

26. Types of Precipitation
The type of precipitation that falls to the ground depends upon the formation process and the temperatures of the environment between the cloud and the surface

27. Can you name the different types of precipitation?
Rain
Snow
Hail
Sleet
Freezing Rain

28. Rain
Rain develops when growing cloud droplets become too heavy to remain in the cloud and as a result, fall toward the surface as rain

29. Rain can also begin as ice crystals that collect each other to form large snowflakes
As the falling snow passes through the freezing level into warmer air, the flakes melt

30. Rain from snow!

31. Snow
Snow is formed when ice crystals form from water vapor that is in the clouds directly above your heads!
This process is called sublimation

33. Hail
Hail is formed when updrafts carry raindrops upwards into extremely cold areas of the atmosphere

34. Hail
There the raindrops merge and freeze. When the frozen clumps get to heavy they fall to earth

35. Hail
Hail can vary in size, from the size of a small stone to that of a baseball! So be careful

36. Sleet
Sleet is frozen raindrops. Sleet begins as rain or snow and falls through a deep layer of cold air that contains temperatures below freezing that exist near the surface.

37. Sleet
Rain that falls through this extremely cold layer has time to freeze into small pieces of ice

38. Freezing Rain
Freezing rain is falling rain that cools below 0°C, but does not turn to ice in the air
The water is “supercooled”

39. When the drops hit anything they instantly turn to ice!

40. Quiz Time

41. Ready?
Nuclei for the formation of rain drops can be small particles of: A) salt, B) smoke, C) dust, D) all the above
Which of these cloud types is not based on the clouds shape: A) stratus, B) nimbus, C) cumulus, D) cirrus

42. 3. Mid elevation clouds between 2000 and 6000m: A) nimbus, B) alto, C) cirro, D) strato
4. This form of precipitation is supercooled: A) rain, B) snow, C) sleet, D) freezing rain

43. 5. This form of precipitation stays frozen all the way to the ground: A) rain, B) snow, C) sleet, D) freezing rain
Let’s see how you did!

44. The Answers!
1. D
2. B
3. B
4. D
5. B

45. The End!

46. Humidity and Relative Humidity
Humidity is the amount of water vapor in the air
Relative humidity is a measure of the amount of water vapor that the air is holding, compared to the amount it can hold at a specific temperature

47. Humidity and Relative Humidity
When the air is holding as much moisture as it can, it’s said to be saturated

48. Can you explain this graph?

49. In the cool of the morning, the air can’t hold as much moisture
In the cool of the morning, the air can’t hold as much moisture. We often have dew on a summer morning
Once the air has warmed, the relative humidity drops since the air can hold more moisture

50. You’ve seen water on the outside of a cold drink?
The cold air around the glass causes a lower temperature at which the air is saturated

51. You’ve seen water on the outside of a cold drink?
The temperature at which air is saturated and condensation takes place is the dew point
To return click here ☼