Formation of Clouds and the Effect on Weather, Research Paper Example

According to the scientific study of the atmosphere i.e. meteorology, clouds are the visible masses of liquid droplets which are composed of water or chemicals, suspended in the atmosphere (Edison, 2012). On the other hand weather is the degree of hotness or coldness, wetness or dryness, calmness or storminess, clearness or cloudiness of the atmosphere. Thus weather is the daily temperature and precipitation activities in the atmosphere. Cloud formation affects weather to a very large extent.

When the water on land or in the oceans evaporates i.e. turning from liquid form into water vapors, it rises up. The vapors will then cool down and turn into liquid from again but in the shape of tiny droplets (the clouds). This results into what can be called fog by many people. However when a lot of this droplets gather together, they can lower the temperature such that it becomes very cold or they fall as rain or snow. It therefore is evident that clouds have both the warming and cooling effect on the surface of the earth. Some specific clouds are responsible for helping in cooling the earth while others aid in warming the earth (Salazar, 2010). All of this depends with their proximity to the surface of the earth. Clouds that are nearest to the surface of the earth are responsible for keeping us cooler. A good and practical example is during a very hot and sunny day. If a cloud chances to cross over your head, you are likely to experience a relief since the heat will go away from that particular moment when you are under that cloud. The clouds achieve this by reflecting the rays from the sun.

For those clouds that are uppermost the atmosphere, their main job is to keep the earth as warm as possible. They restrain heat from escaping to the space. It therefore means that clouds have a huge impact on the temperature of the earth’s surface area. It traps and blocks heat from the sun, which is the supplier of heat to the earth. A vast majority of the atmosphere’s heating is due to the energy from the sun. The sunlight which is a short-wave energy gets absorbed by the surface of the earth thereafter emitting a different type of energy (i.e. is long-wave) in the air that surrounds the earth surface. This long-wave energy is later on absorbed by the greenhouse gases that exist in the atmosphere and which if absent, the atmosphere will be too cold to support any life on earth.

In cases of a heavy cloud cover, the heat energy from the sun gets reflected back to the space and is even sometimes absorbed by the clouds themselves. The reduction in the sunlight will instigate a constraint on the temperature rise at the surface of the earth (Colose, 2012). Nonetheless, these clouds are porous thus they cannot block out all of the heat energy from the sun. This is the reason why you find that even in cloudy days the temperature must move to a certain degree however minimal it might be. The days with complete cloud cover, commonly referred to as the overcast are the ones where the clouds do not break at all. For example in the US, the temperature will warm about 4 to 7 degrees. Days with partly cloudy skies records about 20 to 30 degrees of temperature.

During the night, clouds also have an impact on the temperature of the atmosphere even though the sunlight is absent. At night time, the heat that was absorbed by the earth surface during the day is in turn emitted to the air surrounding the earth. If there is no cloud cover at that night (clear nights), the heat will rise and disappear into space leaving the surface of the earth very cold. The nights will record low temperatures. On the other hand, cloudy skies at night act as trapping zones of the heat that is emitted from the surface of the earth. Although the nights will be cold still, there coldness will be relatively mild. During the night, the surface of the earth emits energy in the form of long-wave radiations and there is no short-wave radiation from the sun. Water vapor which is one of the greenhouse gasses will absorb it thus making the surface of the earth warmer. Clear nights will encourage the escape of the long-wave radiation thus cooling the temperature of the earth.

Different clouds have different effect on the weather (Rockwell & Lessac, 2008). High clouds are above 7 kilometers from the surface of the earth. They are mainly composed of ice crystals. The middle clouds fall in between 2-7 kilometers and they comprise of liquid droplets. The low clouds are below 2 kilometers and also consist of liquid droplets. The last category is that of the clouds of the vertical development which has its base in the low cloud range but whose top goes on to reach the great heights of the high clouds. There is also fog which is a very special case of the cloud formation. Although not clouds outwardly, they are essentially stratoform.

In high clouds, cirrus are said to be the very profuse compared to the rest. They are typically white and predict a fairly pleasant weather. The cirrostratus which is thin and sheet like indicates the coming of either rain or a snow storm. The cirrocumulus which are small and take the shape of a round puffs are arranged in rows majorly appear in winter and they bring with them fair but cold weather. However in tropical regions, they precede a hurricane.

Altostratus is one of the middle range clouds which is grey and has water droplets as well as ice crystals. It covers the whole of the sky whereby the parts which are thinly covered showcase the sun as being dimly visible. They lead to continuous rains and snow. Altocumulus on the other hands form in groups. They lead to thunderstorms.

Low clouds consist of 1) cumulus which are fair-weather clouds; 2) cumulonimbus which are thunder clouds ushering in extreme weather e.g. tornadoes, thunderstorms, heavy rain or hail; 3) stratus which are the overcast and which becomes the fog if they touch the ground and can only produce drizzle if any; 4) Strato-cumulus which brings in dry weather; 5) nimbo-stratus which completely block the sun and lead to rain or snow.

It therefore becomes very apparent that clouds are very essential in shaping our weather which will in turn encompass our climate. Identifying and reporting of these clouds is very vital in weather forecasting. The weather forecasters use satellite pictures in conjunction with the cloud symbols which are plotted on maps. This gives them vibrant information with regard to the condition of the troposphere and the resulting weather systems.

References

Colose, C. (2012, May 5). Clouds and Climate Change – Weather and Climate. Blogs – Times Union. Retrieved March 3, 2013, from http://blog.timesunion.com/weather/clouds-and-climate-change/2129/

Dayton, D. (n.d.). How Do Different Cloud Formations Affect Weather & Climate? | eHow.com. eHow | How to Videos, Articles & More – Discover the expert in you. | eHow.com. Retrieved March 3, 2013, from http://www.ehow.com/facts_7614462_do-formations-affect-weather-climate.html

Edison, E. (2012). Clouds. Mankato, Minn.: Capstone Press.

Farndon, J. (1992). Weather. New York: Dorling Kindersley.

Rockwell, A. F., & Lessac, F. (2008). Clouds. New York: Collins.

Salazar, J. (2010, October 5). How Do Clouds Affect Earth’s Climate? : Discovery News. Discovery News. Retrieved March 3, 2013, from http://news.discovery.com/earth/weather-extreme-events/clouds-climate.html

Weather Wiz Kids weather information for kids. (n.d.). Weather Wiz Kids weather information for kids. Retrieved March 3, 2013, from http://www.weatherwizkids.com/weather-clouds.html

Wesley, J. (n.d.). Precipitation and Clouds, Formation of – temperature, types, effect. Water: Science and Issues. Retrieved March 3, 2013, from http://www.waterencyclopedia.com/Po-Re/Precipitation-and-Clouds-Formation-of.html