Cloud Quiz For CPL

Microbursts are most likely to occur during summer thunderstorms in low-latitude regions with dry surface conditions. They cause intense turbulence and severe wind shear. A warning sign is virga, which are streaks of precipitation that evaporate before reaching the ground.

Stratus (from the Latin stratum meaning “layered”) is a generally gray, flat cloud with a uniform base that often produces drizzle or light snow. Stratus clouds are typically less than 1,500 feet thick and are often much thinner. They are usually the lowest type of cloud.

Altocumulus lenticularis, also known as a lenticular cloud, is found downwind of mountains or hills and indicates the presence of mountain wave activity.

Cirrostratus clouds are high-altitude clouds composed of ice crystals. They form a thin, veil-like layer that covers all or part of the sky, often appearing as a sheet. Cirrostratus clouds typically range from 18,000 to 45,000 feet above the ground. Their presence often indicates the approach of a frontal system, a weather system that brings changes in temperature and precipitation. Like altostratus clouds, cirrostratus clouds can cause the Sun or Moon to appear with a halo, a ring of light surrounding the celestial object.

Low clouds that drizzle are stratus.

Clouds below 1,500 meters or 5,000 feet can lead to an approach ban, preventing aircraft from landing.

A cumulonimbus capillatus is a cumulonimbus cloud with a top composed of dense cirrus clouds, giving it a hair-like appearance.

The presence of a halo indicates that ice crystals predominate in the cloud, reducing the likelihood of ice accretion.

Cumulonimbus clouds can sometimes develop from altocumulus castellanus when there is instability at mid-levels of the troposphere.

Altostratus is a gray or bluish sheet or layer of cloud that can have a fibrous or uniform appearance. Sometimes, altostratus clouds cover the entire sky, creating a “ground glass” effect around the Sun or Moon, known as a corona.