The Weather Word of the Day – Cloud (Part One)
Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome! It’s your local meteorologist here to talk about the dynamic world of weather – meteorology and related fields – in this first installment of The Weather Word of the Day.
We’ll just get our feet wet for starters. Today’s weather world is a crowd favourite: CLOUD (part one).
By definition a cloud is a visible aggregate of minute water droplets or ice particles in the atmosphere above the Earth's surface.High and low clouds depicted are an indication varying thermodynamics at play. (Gary Archibald/CTV News Windsor)
On a personal note, as a young boy growing up in Scarborough Ontario, warm and humid days would give rise (weather pun intended) to some lofty and poetry-inspiring atmospheric creations. Clouds, as it were, would form and change rapidly at times spewing rain, gusty winds – and some times erupt into thunderstorms. Of course, there too, were afternoons where docile clouds would form high above revealing what seemed to be faces, birds of prey and even dinosaurs. To a young boy with a healthy imagination and love of science - these experiences, vivid and dramatic, were captivating and fascinating – setting the stage for a future career as a meteorologist.
Clouds tell us a lot about the state of our atmosphere in the present and the likely future of our local, regional and even global weather. It is the ebb and flow of water in its three states (liquid, solid – ice or ice crystals and as vapour/gas), along with atmospheric pressure (barometric), energy, and temperature flux that in a nutshell, determines how, when and where clouds will form.
In addition, the factor of time is critical too. All of the ingredients mentioned above work according to the laws of physics over time in a dimension of space – that being an area within our atmosphere. Clouds form at different heights (altitudes), too. Fog, for example forms at the surface. Cirrus clouds, are primary high level formations made up of ice crystals and can be form well over 40- thousand feet. Clouds with the prefix ‘alto’ are mid-level clouds (e.g. altocumulus). The ‘nimbo’ in nimbostratus or cumulonimbus denotes a cloud that is producing precipitation (e.g. rain).High level cirrus clouds. (Gary Archibald/ CTV News Windsor)
Clouds that produce precipitation and wind are of the most concern for people – where we live, work and play. Snow, ice pellets, graupel, rain are all forms of active weather that are produced by clouds. Moreover, systems of weather – low pressure areas are cloud-laden – with the most potent forms (on a macro scale – hurricanes or typhoons, and on a micro scale tornadoes).
There’s so much more to discuss and breakdown but I think we’re off to a great start! I’m excited to share! I hope that you are too. Get out there and photograph your weather. You can submit your images to be seen on our 6 p.m. CTV News Windsor show as our Weather Snapshot of the Day.
Stay tuned for my next installment of The Weather Word of the Day: CLOUDS (Part Two).
Until next time – take care and enjoy your weather!
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Boeing's financial woes continue, while families of crash victims urge U.S. to prosecute the company
Boeing said Wednesday that it lost US$355 million on falling revenue in the first quarter, another sign of the crisis gripping the aircraft manufacturer as it faces increasing scrutiny over the safety of its planes and accusations of shoddy work from a growing number of whistleblowers.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
"It's a bit of a complicated pattern; we've got a lot going on," said Jennifer Smith of the Meteorological Service of Canada in an interview with CTVNews.ca on Wednesday. "[As is] typical with weather, all of these things are related."
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.