enow.com Web Search

Search results

  1. Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
  2. Cloud physics - Wikipedia

    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_physics

    Cloud physics is the study of the physical processes that lead to the formation, growth and precipitation of atmospheric clouds. These aerosols are found in the troposphere , stratosphere , and mesosphere , which collectively make up the greatest part of the homosphere .

  3. Convective available potential energy - Wikipedia

    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convective_available...

    In meteorology, convective available potential energy (commonly abbreviated as CAPE), [1] is a measure of the capacity of the atmosphere to support upward air movement that can lead to cloud formation and storms. Some atmospheric conditions, such as very warm, moist, air in an atmosphere that cools rapidly with height, can promote strong and ...

  4. Atmospheric convection - Wikipedia

    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmospheric_convection

    If enough instability is present in the atmosphere, this process will continue long enough for cumulonimbus clouds to form, which supports lightning and thunder. Generally, thunderstorms require three conditions to form: moisture, an unstable airmass, and a lifting force (heat).

  5. Cloud - Wikipedia

    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud

    The altitude, form, and thickness of the clouds are the main factors that affect the local heating or cooling of the Earth and the atmosphere. Clouds that form above the troposphere are too scarce and too thin to have any influence on climate change. Clouds are the main uncertainty in climate sensitivity. [2]

  6. Capping inversion - Wikipedia

    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capping_inversion

    A strong cap can result in foggy conditions. However, if the air at the surface is unstable enough, strong updrafts can be forced through the capping inversion. This selective process of only allowing the strongest updrafts to form thunderstorms often results in outbreaks of severe weather. The role of capping inversions in bolstering the ...

  7. Cloud condensation nuclei - Wikipedia

    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_condensation_nuclei

    Cloud condensation nuclei (CCNs), also known as cloud seeds, are small particles typically 0.2 μm, or one hundredth the size of a cloud droplet. [1] CCNs are a unique subset of aerosols in the atmosphere on which water vapour condenses. This can affect the radiative properties of clouds and the overall atmosphere. [2]

  8. Atmospheric thermodynamics - Wikipedia

    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmospheric_thermodynamics

    Atmospheric thermodynamics is the study of heat-to-work transformations (and their reverse) that take place in the Earth's atmosphere and manifest as weather or climate. . Atmospheric thermodynamics use the laws of classical thermodynamics, to describe and explain such phenomena as the properties of moist air, the formation of clouds, atmospheric convection, boundary layer meteorology, and ...

  9. Convective temperature - Wikipedia

    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convective_temperature

    The convective temperature (CT or T c) is the approximate temperature that air near the surface must reach for cloud formation without mechanical lift. In such case, cloud base begins at the convective condensation level (CCL), whilst with mechanical lifting (such as from low-pressure areas located in the lower troposphere, frontal systems, surface boundaries, gravity waves, and convergence ...