• Question: What are clouds made of?

    Asked by to Andrei, Ekbal, Gemma, Helen, Ruth on 17 Jun 2014. This question was also asked by .
    • Photo: Helen Gath

      Helen Gath answered on 17 Jun 2014:

      Clouds are actually made from very small water droplets that have collected on particles of dust in the sky. As you go higher into the sky, the air temperature get much much cooler, and at this point some clouds are made from particles of ice! Pretty cool to think you could be looking up at a beautiful, sunny blue sky but the clouds could be made of ice!

      When water particles stick to an object you get CONDENSATION – so when you have a hot shower and your mirror gets all steamed up, this is because the water vapour in the air has condensed onto the mirror – then you draw a smiley face! Clouds are made when the water vapour in the air (which is all around us) cools down, which happens as you go higher in the sky. They latch on to, or condense on to, smaller particles in the air. These condensed water droplets then stick together with more and more water droplets and dust particles in the sky until finally…..you have a cloud.

      Clouds come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, and meteorologists (people who study the weather and climate) have named a lot of them. When not try looking at the types of clouds in the sky on you next break and try to work out what their name would be…
      http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/learning/clouds/high-clouds#cirrus-clouds
      http://eo.ucar.edu/webweather/cloud3.html
      Have fun!

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