Clouds

Clouds may only seem to be white puffs or gray streaks but if you begin to look at them more closely, they show a great variety of shapes and colors. In fact, that is how scientists group them: according to their shape and color.

Cumulus Clouds

• Cumulus means "mound" in Latin

• They look like puffy balls of cotton

• They are low level - 1 mile up

• They are often separated by clear blue sky

Stratus Clouds

• Stratus means "spreading" in Latin

• They are low level, gray and foggy

• They are like a broad thin blanket across the sky

• They might produce light rain

Cirrus Clouds

• Cirrus means "a wisp of hair" in Latin

• They are thin wispy high level clouds

• They are formed of ice crystals

• They arrive before a warm front

• They forecast unsettled weather

Precipitation

Water that falls to the ground in liquid or solid form. It could be drizzle, sleet, snow, and hail.