Clouds

weather · water cycle · sky · atmosphere

Made of Water. Clouds look fluffy and solid, but they are actually made of billions of super tiny droplets of water or ice crystals suspended in the air. These droplets are so small and light that they float instead of falling.

Forms When Air Cools. Clouds form when warm air rises, cools down, and reaches its dew point, the temperature where water vapor turns into liquid droplets. This happens naturally when air is lifted over mountains or cooled by the atmosphere.

Different Shapes Mean Different Things. Clouds come in many shapes and heights, from puffy fair-weather clouds to flat layers to wispy feathers. The shape and type of cloud can tell you what kind of weather is coming.

Droplets Grow and Fall. When water droplets in a cloud bump into each other and stick together, they become heavy enough to fall as rain or snow. This is how clouds bring water back to Earth as part of the water cycle.

Part of Earth's System. Clouds are essential to life on Earth because they redistribute water around the planet, provide fresh water as rain, and help regulate the planet's temperature by reflecting and trapping heat.