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Posted by on Dec 27, 2015 in TellMeWhy |

How Do Clouds Change Shape?

How Do Clouds Change Shape?

How Do Clouds Change Shape? Clouds are made mostly of tiny droplets of water floating about on currents of air. On a windy day, the air currents may stretch a cloud out or lift parts of it higher and higher, or they may break the cloud up into smaller clouds.

Most often, clouds change their shapes when they come into contact with warmer air. Some of the cloud droplets evaporate into the warm air, and the cloud grows smaller. It may even disappear altogether!

Later, in another place, the water vapor may condense to form new droplets of water big enough to be seen again as a cloud.

Condensation is the process where water vapor turns into liquefied water. Clouds are formed when the water vapor attached to air molecules turned into cloud droplets due to a drop in temperature.

The cloud droplets form clouds. While that is happening to the cloud, another part of the cloud could be experiencing evaporation.

Evaporation is the process where liquefied water turns into water vapor due to an increase in temperature. Parts of clouds disappeared when the cloud droplets are vaporized when the air surrounding that section of the cloud rises in temperature.

This makes cloud disappear. Therefore, from these two processes of evaporation and condensation, the shape of clouds is constantly changing.

Content for this question contributed by Debbie Finke, resident of Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio, USA