what are Clouds Made of?

Answer 1

Clouds are made of water droplets which in turn are formed by the condensation of water vapour in the presence of what is called condensation nuclei which are sufficiently available in the air.Water vapour is invisible whereas water droplets are responsible for the white ,grey or dark colour of the clouds.

Answer 2

A cloud is a visible mass of condensed droplets, frozen crystals suspended in the atmosphere above the surface of the Earth or another planetary body, such as a moon. (Clouds can also occur as masses of material in interstellar space, where they are called interstellar clouds and nebulae.) The branch of meteorology in which clouds are studied is nephology.

On Earth the condensing substance is typically water vapor, which forms small droplets or ice crystals, typically 0.01 mm in diameter. When surrounded by billions of other droplets or crystals they become visible as clouds. Dense deep clouds exhibit a high reflectance (70% to 95%) throughout the visible range of wavelengths: they thus appear white, at least from the top. Cloud droplets tend to scatter light efficiently, so that the intensity of the solar radiation decreases with depth into the cloud, hence the gray or even sometimes dark appearance of the clouds at their base. Thin clouds may appear to have acquired the color of their environment or background, and clouds illuminated by non-white light, such as during sunrise or sunset, may be colored accordingly. In the near-infrared range, clouds would appear darker because the water that constitutes the cloud droplets strongly absorbs solar radiation at those wavelengths.

Answer 3

Water rises from the sea and gets pushed into the sky. When there's enough water it becomes a cloud. If more water wants to add to the cloud it becomes to heavy, so it falls from the atmosphere as rain.

Answer 4

Giant Gas Cloud Made of Atoms Formed in First Stars Revealed in Universe's Most Distant Quasar ...

Answer 5

http://www.srh.noaa.gov/srh/jetstream/synoptic/clouds.htm


Clouds form when air is cooled to its dewpoint or the temperature, if the air is cooled, it reaches saturation. Air can reach saturation in a number of ways. The most common way is through lifting. As a bubble or parcel of air rises it moves into an area of lower pressure (pressure decreases with height). As this occurs the parcel expands. This requires energy, or work, which takes heat away from the parcel. So as air rises it cools. This is called an adiabatic process.

The rate at which the parcel cools with increasing elevation is called the "lapse rate". The lapse rate of unsaturated air (air with relative humidity <100%) is 5.4°F per 1000 feet (9.8°C per kilometer). This is called the dry lapse rate. This means for each 1000 feet increase in elevation, the air temperature will decrease 5.4°F.

Since cold air can hold less water vapor than warm air, some of the vapor will condense onto tiny clay and salt particles called condensation nuclei. The reverse is also true. As a parcel of air sinks it encounters increasing pressure so it is squeezed inward. This adds heat to the parcel so it warms as it sinks. Warm air can hold more water vapor than cold air, so clouds tend to evaporate as air sinks.


Types of Clouds
There are four basic cloud categories observed in our atmosphere:
Cirro-form High-level clouds which form above 20,000 feet (6,000 m) and are usually composed of ice crystals. High-level clouds are typically thin and white in appearance, but can create an array of colors when the sun is low on the horizon. Cirrus generally occur in fair weather and point in the direction of air movement at their elevation.

Nimbo-form Nimbus comes from the Latin word meaning "rain". These clouds typically form between 7,000 and 15,000 feet (2,100 to 4,600 m) and bring steady precipitation. As the clouds thicken and precipitation begins to fall, the bases of the clouds tend to lower toward the ground.

Cumulo-form Clouds look like white fluffy cotton balls or heaps and show the vertical motion or thermal uplift of air taking place in the atmosphere. The level at which condensation and cloud formation begins is indicated by a flat cloud base, and its height will depend upon the humidity of the rising air. The more humid the air, the lower the cloud base. The tops of these clouds can reach over 60,000 feet (18,000 m).

Strato-form "Stratus" is Latin for layer or blanket. The clouds consist of a feature-less low layer that can cover the entire sky like a blanket, bringing generally gray and dull weather. The cloud bases are usually only a few hundred feet above the ground. Over hills and mountains they can reach ground level when they may be called fog. Also, as fog "lifts" off the ground due to daytime heating, the fog forms a layer of low stratus clouds.

Answer 6

Water vapor, I have always wondered if dark clouds are dirty water, (I know better now).

Answer 7

Water Mostley i belive

Answer 8

Water vapour.