I know that the cloud looks darker when there is a higher concentration of water vapor, but I want to know WHY more water vapor makes it darker.
2007-09-03 07:24:22 · 4 answers · asked by markwd21 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Earth Sciences & Geology
To the person that said it is because you see it from below, I would think that is right, except that when I was in an airplane, looking at the clouds from above, some were white and some were gray. So it can't be that the white light gets reflected back.
2007-09-03 07:34:28 · update #1
Because there is more water/ice to block the sunlight.
2007-09-03 07:32:02 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
What you've got to remember is that you're seeing the cloud from below. The cloud is white from above and reflects most of the light that reaches it from the sun back into space. The result is that the light does not penetrate the cloud and the other side of it is dark.
2007-09-03 14:30:58 · answer #2 · answered by Radio Rich 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It just looks darker from below because less sunlight comes through the more dense the cloud is. If you look at it from above it is brilliant white.
2007-09-03 14:32:48 · answer #3 · answered by Cappo359 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Simply put:
It's because you're not seeing vapor,
(you can't see water vapor), you're seeing
droplets that condense from the vapor.
The more droplets, the more the light is
scattered and absorbed, the darker the
cloud appears.
2007-09-03 16:24:42 · answer #4 · answered by Irv S 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋