050 04 01 01

050 04 01 02
050 04 01 03
050 04 01 04
 CLOUDS
“A visible mass of condensed watery vapour floating in the
atmosphere, typically high above the general level of the ground”
Can be signal of stable weather but can be signal of …
Turbulence Pilots must be able to
Poor visibility recognize the different
types of clouds
Precipitation and identify the hazards
associated with the
Icing clouds
Lighting
 CLOUD FORMATION
A)Clouds form almost exclusively due to the upward movement of air (
vertical movement , Convection )

B) Much more rarely, clouds form due to increases in humidity or falls in

temperature within a particular layer, triggered by advection (the horizontal
supply of air).
• Advection processes can take place at all levels in the troposphere

What is
Advection ?

Advenction produces
Conduction Transfer of energy
by direct contact.
• Mechanisms of Cooling - Advection
An air mass moving over a cooler Surface Will cool the lower layers od the airmass ( Conduction) . If the
dew point is reached , condensation Will occur and a cloud Will form ( typically Radiation Fog)
 Convection
 Cloud is formed by air being lifted and cooled adiabatically until the water vapour condenses out as water
droplets
 The height at which this occurs is called the condensation level = cloud base
 Whenever the air reaches saturation, water vapor will change state to water droplets or ice crystals, which
will be visible to the eye. If this occurs above the ground a cloud may be formed

The stability of the atmosphere is among the factors which will

decide what type of cloud will be formed
The Temperature where the cloud forms will imply water, droplets,
ice crystals or a combination
a) Convection.
b) Orographic Uplift.
c) Slow, widespread ascent (frontal uplift).
d) Convergence

ELR ( Enviroment Lapse

Rate)
Decrease of the Tª with
the heigh ELP 6,5º/km or
2º/1000 ft
DALR ( 3º/1000 ft)
SALR ( 1,5º/1000 ft)
B ) Orographic Cloud Stable air
D ) Widespread Ascent (Frontal Uplift)
At a front there is widespread lifting of air as warm air comes into contact with colder air
Layer type clouds form in the stable air ( Ns, As, Cs and Ci) at a warm front and heap
clouds in the unstable air ( CU, CB, AC and CI ) at a cold front.

Tomorrow ??
 FRONTAL UPLIFT -
COLD FRONT

FRONTAL UPLIFT -
WARM FRONT
E ) Convergence Cloud
When there is LOW pressure there is always convergence at the surface which leads to air
being lifted.
With strong convergence at a trough, lifting can cause instability to develop so that the
cloud type is Cu or Cb
In a non-frontal LOW ( circular ISOBARS ) normally only ST /SC cloud will be formed by
convergence.
 A ) Turbulence Cloud/ Turbulence Inversion
 Turbulance near the surface ( Mechanical) and thermal effect ( warm air rising)
 Outgoing radiation taking place on cloudless nights results in intense cooling of the Earth’s surface
 This cooling is transferred to the lower-lying layers of air and results in the formation of an inversion .
Cooling causes the relative humidity to rise
 Where air movement is low, this situation can cause the formation of fog
 If the wind is little high produce the air rise ( upward movement) causing further cooling of the air.
 The cooler air increase the dense and descent producing turbulence and circulation
 So the clouds formed by this turbulence can produce fog if they appear a low level or a layer of stratus
ST or SC when the are appear a other altitudes.
 Cloud Base & Cloud Ceiling
• C .Base “That lowest zone in which the type of obscuration perceptibly changes from
that corresponding to clear air haze to that corresponding to water droplets or ice
crystals.”
• C. Ceiling “The height above aerodrome level of the lowest layer of cloud of more than 4
oktas” so BKN Cloud Celling is not the TOP of Clouds
METAR EDDB 010950Z AUTO 08008KT 3400 BR OVC005
OVC008
SCT005
00/M02 Q1029 BECMG 5000
Measurement of Cloud Tops
Not easily measured
The most accurate method is Pilot Reports
Cloud Movement
• The movement of the clouds is measure with a
“Nephoscope”
• It measures the angular speed and if the base
height is know the speed of movement may be
calculated.
 Freezing is
possible in Limits between 7000 and 18000
these clouds
Altostratus (As or AS)

Virga is an
observable streak
of precipitation
but evaporates
before reaching
the ground
 CU is water cloud
Its lower limits lie between 500 ft and 7000 ft
Light intensity rain showers are very often produced by CU cloud
Its upper limits are seasonally dependent, with wide variation,
and temperatures as low as -25° C prevail, since water droplets
can exists as supercooled water up to this
temperature
Lower Limits between 700 ft and 6000 ft
and the Top depends of many factors can
be up to 30.000 ft or even more. The top
is limited by Tª inversion ( Stable)
Inside of the cloud the Tª may be -15ºC /
- 35ºC in the Top