Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Download What`s That in the Sky?
Document related concepts
no text concepts found
Transcript
What’s That in the Sky? Jess Webster Doug Simonian Matt Devereaux Table of Contents How do clouds form?............................................. 3 Darker and lighter clouds....................................... 4 Rain drops in clouds.............................................. 6 Cirrus clouds........................................................ 7 Stratus clouds...................................................... 8 Cumulus clouds.................................................... 9 Cumulonimbus clouds........................................... 10 How does fog form?.............................................. 11 Why do some sunsets make the sky look red?.......... 12 Why can you see your breath when it’s cold?............ 13 When will your breath turn white?.......................... 14 Contrails............................................................. 15 Funnel cloud........................................................ 16 The spectrum of clouds......................................... 17 Resources............................................................ 18 How Do Clouds Form? SUN Air bubble A cloud is formed when an invisible bubble of air on the ground is heated by the sun’s rays and warms up. As a result, it becomes lighter than the other air around it and begins to rise! As it rises, it cools down and grows in size. Once it cools enough, water droplets and tiny bits of ice begin to form in the bubble. When enough droplets come together, a cloud begins to form. The cloud will become taller until it is the same temperature as the air around it! Usually, the thicker the cloud, the darker it appears! This is because thicker clouds have more water droplets and bits of ice in them. The sunlight has trouble shining through lots of water and ice, so the thick clouds look darker! Can you see the difference between these two pictures? The bottom clouds are thinner and they look a lot brighter than the thicker clouds above! Believe it or not, there’s water in this picture! The reason for the reflection is the same reason some clouds are darker than others! The sunlight can’t shine through the water, so it bounces off the top. As a result, we see a near perfect reflection! When a cloud is filled with too many water droplets, the droplets inside the cloud begin to collide with each other and grow. Eventually, they become too big and heavy to stay inside the cloud, and are forced to fall down towards the ground. This is why rain occurs! Cirrus Clouds Cirrus clouds are VERY high clouds, usually above 20,000 feet in the sky! Because air higher up is drier, cirrus clouds have less water and appear very thin and wispy! Cirrus clouds don’t form rain or snow. Stratus Clouds Stratus clouds form lower in the sky than cirrus clouds. These clouds are mostly flat at the bottom and don’t have much shape. Sometimes they can even be fog that doesn’t reach the ground! Cumulus Clouds Cumulus clouds also start to form much lower in the sky than cirrus clouds. But they can grow to be very tall! They contain lots of water droplets and bits of ice, so these clouds often produce lots of rain! They are also very puffy, which can cause animal-like shapes! Doesn’t the cloud on top look like a dog? Cumulonimbus These clouds are very tall cumulus clouds that make thunderstorms! They require warm, moist air to form. These clouds can produce very heavy rain and even large ice pellets called hail! They can grow up to 45,000 feet with a flat top, and look very impressive in the sky! How Does Fog Form? Fog is a cloud that forms on the ground! It forms when warm air passes over cold, moist air at the surface. You see fog most often in the early morning, since the ground is cold at night and warms suddenly when the sun rises. Eventually, the ground warms up so much that the fog totally disappears! When you are standing in fog, you are literally standing in a cloud! Why Are Some Sunsets Red? Since the sun is at such a low angle in the sky during sunset, the rays pass through much more of the dust in the atmosphere. The larger amount of dust reflects the sun’s rays and makes it appear a different color! This results in the sky turning red! Why Can You See Your Breath When It’s Cold? When you breathe out, your breath starts very warm. When this very warm air mixes with the very cold outside air, it instantly begins to cool and expand. Once it gets cold enough, the water forms into a group small droplets (in a process called condensation) which we can see. You are literally creating a cloud with every breath! When Will Your Breath Turn White? Indoors, it is too warm and dry to see your breath turn white When the sun comes out on a cold day, it will be harder to see your breath turn white Early in the morning or on a cloudy day when it is cold, it is the easiest to see your breath! Contrails Contrails are skinny, long clouds that are actually caused by airplanes! When the warm air from a plane engine is released, it mixes with the MUCH colder air high up in the sky (above 30,000 feet!). Depending on how dry the atmosphere is, these contrails can last for hours before dissolving. Believe it or not, these thin clouds actually cool our earth down! Funnel Cloud A funnel cloud has a rotating cloud cone that drops from the bottom of the cloud towards the ground. This happens because the winds are spinning! When winds change in direction as you go higher, that can cause a cloud to spin! When a funnel cloud hits the ground, it becomes a tornado. When a funnel cloud hits the water, it is called a waterspout. However, some funnel clouds never hit the ground, and its name stays the same. The Spectrum Of Clouds Here we can see the different types of clouds and where they form in the sky! Notice the towering cumulonimbus, which can reach lengths of over 30,000 feet! Resources http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cirrus_cloud http://artgallery-pictures.blogspot.com/2011_01_01_archive.html http://robinweeks.blogspot.com/2011/06/poetry-chall-ange.html http://mn.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%A4%D0%B0%D0%B9%D0% BB:Rain_cloud_swifts_creek_0107.jpg http://lazyneko.wordpress.com/2010/04/02/cloud-addiction/ http://www.art.com/products/p13026123-sa-i2267828/n-a-callow-cirrusclouds-tien-shan-mountains-kazakhstan-central-asia.htm http://www.trekearth.com/gallery/Africa/Morocco/North/Meknes/Merzouga/ photo1009879.htm http://ed101.bu.edu/StudentDoc/current/ED101fa09/daisyg/Stratus.html http://www.historyforkids.org/scienceforkids/physics/weather/stratus.htm http://4warnwxteam.com/2011/04/12/decifering-fog/ http://www.layoutsparks.com/1/129320/red-sunset-request-beach.html http://www.batamhousing.com/comfort-your-family-in-winter-by-livingroom-fireplace-designs/ http://www.pauldoolan.com/2010/01/here-is-photo-taken-yesterdayafternoon.html http://livingwithrory.wordpress.com/2010/02/18/why-i-hate-walking-whenits-sunny-30-oneaday/ http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/fgz/science/contrail.php?wfo=fgz http://www.warren-wilson.edu/~physics/ PhysPhotOfWeek/20060224Contrails/index.html http://www.bigbranch.net/cumulus.htm
