Do cumulus clouds mean unstable air?
Clouds formed by vertical currents in unstable air are cumulus meaning accumulation or heap; they are characterized by their lumpy, billowy appearance. Clouds formed by the cooling of a stable layer are stratus meaning stratified or layered; they are characterized by their uniform, sheet-like appearance.
What clouds have unstable air?
Unstable air will generally have tall cauliflower-like clouds known as cumulus, These grow quickly and are associated with showers of heavy rain. Some get so tall that ice forms near their tops, giving a fluffy, bright white appearance to what is called the anvil cloud-head.
What does it mean when air is unstable?
Air is considered unstable, in the lowest layers of an air mass when the air is warmer and or more humid than the surrounding air. When this occurs the air will rise, as that air parcel is warmer than the air surrounding it. In an unstable environment, the weather can change suddenly and can be violent.
What is a characteristic of unstable air?
Unstable air masses have cumuliform clouds which are clouds that stretch vertically up and down. They have staggering precipitation rather than having steady precipitation. They have rough air that causes turbulence and they have good visibility unless there are blowing obstructions in the air.
What are characteristics of unstable air quizlet?
What are characteristics of unstable air? Turbulence and good surface visibility. Explanation: It is easy to associate turbulence with unstable air.
Why are cumulus clouds more frequently observed during the afternoon?
Why are cumulus clouds more frequently observed during the afternoon than at night? During the afternoon, the ground is warmed by the mid-day sun. This in turn heats the air at the ground, which forms a warm air bubble that rises and eventually becomes a cumulus cloud.
Which of the following best describes cumulus clouds?
Cumulus clouds are puffy and have a flat base. Clouds that fall under the nimbus category appear dark and gray. Temperature decreases as height in the atmosphere increases. Because of this, high clouds are made of ice crystals and low clouds are made of water droplets.
What does instability mean weather?
Instability is the state in which an air parcel finds itself warmer than the air surrounding it at the same pressure (elevation). Meteorologists (because of #1 in table just above) often looks at maps of dew point temperature to infer, as a first guess, areas that might be prone for thunderstorm development.
What are the effects of unstable air?
Effects of atmospheric instability in moist atmospheres include thunderstorm development, which over warm oceans can lead to tropical cyclogenesis, and turbulence. In dry atmospheres, inferior mirages, dust devils, steam devils, and fire whirls can form.
How do you know if a air is stable or unstable?
If it falls rapidly with height, then the atmosphere is said to be unstable; if it falls more slowly (or even temporarily increases with height) then a stable atmosphere is present.
What causes instability in the atmosphere?
The warmth from the forest fire heats the air, causing instability near the surface. Warm, less-dense air (and smoke) bubbles upward, expanding and cooling as it rises. Eventually the rising air cools to its dew point, condensation begins, and a cumulus cloud forms.