Clouds And Precipitation

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clouds

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an area of the atmosphere that saturated or supr saturated

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Types of clouds :

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warm clouds (T>-10) - consist exclusively of water droplets

cold clouds (T<-10) - tiny ice cristals. snow forms in here

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Clouds attributes (names)on basis of altitude:

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cirro : high level (always cold)

alto: mid level

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clouds attributes (names) on basis of pattern

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cumulo : vertically developed (cold)

strato: stratified, confined to a single level , layered (warm)

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clouds attributes (names) based on ability to produce precipitation

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nimbo: precipitation bearing (cold and warm)

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Cloud types :

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high clouds :

-cirrus

-cirrocumulos

-cirrostratus

-contrails

mid-clouds:

-altocummulus

-altostratus

low clouds:

-stratus

-nimbostratus

-stratocumulus

-cumulus

-cumulunimbus

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High clouds:

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always cold

altitude 20,000 +

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cirrus:

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High

cold

wispy

streched out

very thin

allow sun to shine throught

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Cirrocumulos

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*high

*fine grained appereance

*bubble like clouds

*interwoven with blue sky

*a little vertical development (rising motions with cloud elements, sinking motions surronding cloud elements )

*variation in vertical and horizontal air motions --> bumpy plane ride

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cummulostratus

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*high

*very thin

*cover the whole sky in a layered fashion given

- a ring-like appereance around the sun

- mini-rainbow; diffraction of light (sun dogs)

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contrails:

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-high

-trail of loud consisting of liquid water

1. condensation and largely deposition

2. water-vapor comes out of plane engines and instantaneously turns to ice crystals

3. the relative humidity is close to 100%

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middle clouds:

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8000- 20,000

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altocumulus:

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middle clouds

warm

similar to cirrocumulus just lower in the column

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altostratus:

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*middle clouds

*warm

*thicker

*lower in the atmosphere so block out sunlight more than cirrostratus

*ring around the sun

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low clouds :

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500 to 8,000 high

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stratus

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*low level

*stratified

*effectively block out the sun

(can produce drizzle, but not measurable

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Nimbostratus

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*low thicker

*darker

*producing recipitation

*streaked appereance

rather featureless as falling precipitation obscures cloud edges

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stratocumulus

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*low

*stratified

*not thick

*connected with a stable atmosphere

(air doesn't want to move vertically )

note that the dark clouds are associated with a low sun angle

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clouds associated with vertical development

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cumulus

cumulunimbus

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cumulus:

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*low level

*unstable atmosphere(Air is lifting )

*daytime heating when the relative humidity is high

*vertical development

*late morning hours in carolina summer

*common with daytime heating when the relative hummidity is relatively high

*show some vertical development (deeper instability )

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cumulonimbus

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*largest clouds

*dark bottom

*thunderstorm

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precipitation

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requires the development of droplet/ snowflakes that are 100 times bigger than cloud water droplets/ice crystals

most clouds don't have precipitation

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two processes for growing hydrometeors

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a. bergeon

b. collision-coallecence

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hydometeors:

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refers to any type of precipitation

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Bergeron process definition :

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grows ice crystal through multiple processes involving all 3 stages of water

requires a cold cloud where ice crystals, water vapor, and supercooled water coexist.

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bergeron processes:

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deposition of vapor --> ice crystals growth. '

removal of water around ice crystals so relative humidity drops

rising air motions keep growing snowflakes aloft until it becomes too heavy

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what is the dominant process in bergeon

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deposition is the dominant process

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is it possible for the bergeron process to occur in lower altitudes creating snow?

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yes, on winter when the surface temperature is cold enough

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what appereance the bergeron process gives to clouds?

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porvides a distinct glazed and/or streaked appereance

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bergeron porcess OFTEN produces ice cristals taht acts like seeds for growing hydrometers bellow in the lower portion of the clouds ?

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true

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what types of clouds does bergeron process occur normally?

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high cold clouds

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cirrus (image)

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cirrucumulus (image)

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cirrostratus (image)

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contrails (image)

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altocumulus(image)

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altostratus (image)

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stratus(image)

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startus 2 (image)

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nimbostratus(image)

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stratocumulus (image)

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cumulus (image)

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cumulunimbus (image)

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Bergeron proceess (image)starting

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bergeron process (image ) cold situation

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why do bereron process louds have that aspect ?

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when it produces snowflake steh refelcton of light make them look like tehy are falling or rotating

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collision coalescence

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hydrometers growth as it collides with smaller dropplets through the sky

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collision coallescenece characteristics

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only preciotation formation that pperates in warm clouds

can supplement bergeon process in cold clouds

large cloud droplets falls through smaller cloud droplets accumulating them along the way

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seeder-feeder process

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combination of bergeron and collision coalescence (warmer droplets are feeding teh seeds)

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seeder feeder scenario 1:

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rain dropletsfrom melted snowflakes are feed by the warm cloud water droplets

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seeder feeder scenario 2:

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cloud water droplets freeze on falling snowflakes, ina a process called riming teh snowflakes growth in size as it falls though the warmer parts of the cloud

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is it possible to determine the degree at which a snowflake has being rimed ?

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yes it si

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precipitation rate:

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amount of precipitation per a given amound of time

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controls on precipitation rate:

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1. amount of water vapor condensed / deposited out

2. rate of lifting

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amount of WV condensed/deposited depends on :

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- air temperature

-proximity to warm body of water

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rate of lifting:

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how quickly the air is being lifted up

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rate of lifting depends on:

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convective lift an order of magnitude

(stronger teh lift the moretiem teh bergeron process has to make snowflakes

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how faster is the convective lift from the frontal lifts ?

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convective lift 10-50 times faster

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Two precipitation types:

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stratiform

convective

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startiform

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*sudden changes in temperature, humidity and pressure of air

*warm mets the cold ar and warm is forced to rise

*less intense with over a longer perod time than convective

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convective

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*precipitation falls as a showers with rapidly changing intensify over a certain areas for a relative short time

*mainly in a conditionally unstable or moist atmosphere

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what type of clouds produce startiform precipitation?

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nimbostratus

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what type of cloud produces convective precipitaton?

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cumulonimbus