Clouds

1. Cirrocumulus

1.1. Thin, white patch, sheet, or layered of clouds without shading

1.2. High in the atmosphere

1.3. (Ten Basic Cloud Types, n.d.)

2. Cirrostratus

2.1. High in the atmosphere

2.2. Resemble a large, thin, rippling sheet across the sky.

2.3. Usually signify rain or snow is coming.

2.4. Ten Basic Cloud Types, n.d.)

3. Cumulus

3.1. Large and fluffy like cotton balls

3.2. Signify good/fair weather

3.3. Low in the atmosphere

3.4. Sharp, distinct edges are made up of water droplets

3.5. (Tobin, 2016)

4. Cirrus

4.1. High in the atmosphere

4.2. Made of ice crystals

4.3. Signify a change in weather

4.4. (Tobin, 2016)

5. Stratus

5.1. Covers the sky like a blanket

5.2. Cause cool temperatures in the day and warm temperatures at night.

5.2.1. These types of clouds act as a shield from the sun, by reflecting and absorbing the sun's rays.

5.2.2. At night the heat trapped within the clouds warms the earth.

5.3. Low in the atmosphere

5.4. (Tobin, 2016)

6. Nimbo- or -nimbus

6.1. Precipitation

6.1.1. Rain

6.1.1.1. water droplets; water vapor condenses around a particle in the cloud and becomes heavy enough to fall to the ground in liquid form

6.1.2. Sleet

6.1.2.1. Ice pellets that melt when they pass through a warm layer in the atmosphere. The rain then falls through a deep, freezing layer and the droplets refreeze into pellets of ice.

6.1.3. Snow

6.1.3.1. Ice crystals that have formed around a dust particle in the atmosphere. Snowflakes are made up of multiple ice crystals. Snow is formed within the cloud.

6.1.4. Freezing Rain

6.1.4.1. water droplets that fall and freeze on contact with the ground

6.1.5. Hail

6.1.5.1. hard, round ice pellets; formed when a water droplet are trapped in a freezing downdraft with in a cloud. The droplets are frozen into ice pellets. These pellets are then caught in an updraft within the cloud because they are not heavy enough to be pulled down to earth. The pellets go through this cycle multiple times, collecting more and more layers of ice until they become too heavy and fall as hail.

6.1.6. (Windows, 2008)

6.2. Cumulonimbus

6.2.1. Summer thunderstorm clouds

6.2.1.1. Strong, short, bursts of rain

6.2.1.2. Hail

6.2.1.3. Tornados

6.2.1.4. Snow

6.3. Nimbostratus

6.3.1. Long, steady rain showers

7. References

7.1. Precipitation Types: Climate Education Modules for K-12. (2013, August 9). Retrieved October 8, 2016, from http://climate.ncsu.edu/edu/k12/.preciptypes

7.2. Melisurgo, L. (2016). Sleet vs. freezing rain: What is the difference? NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. Retrieved October 5, 2016, from http://www.nj.com/weather/index.ssf/2016/02/sleet_vs_freezing_rain_how_to_tell_the_difference.html

7.3. Ten Basic Cloud Types. (n.d.). Retrieved October 7, 2016, from http://www.srh.noaa.gov/srh/jetstream/clouds/cloudwise/types.html

7.4. Tobin, Declan. (2016). Fun Cloud Facts For Kids. Easy Science for Kids. Retrieved from http://easyscienceforkids.com/all-about-clouds/

7.5. Windows to the Universe team (2008). Biomes and Ecosystems. Retrieved , from http://www.windows2universe.org

8. Standards

8.1. 5.E.1 Understand weather patterns and phenomena, making connections to the weather in a particular place and time.

8.1.1. 5.E.1.1 Compare daily and seasonal changes in weather conditions (including wind speed and direction, precipitation, and temperature) and patterns.

8.1.2. 5.E.1.2 Predict upcoming weather events from weather data collected through observation and measurements.

8.1.3. 5.E.1.3 Explain how global patterns such as the jet stream and water currents influence local weather in measurable terms such as temperature, wind direction and speed, and precipitation.

9. Altostratus

9.1. Low in the atmosphere

9.2. Gray or white coloring

9.3. Cover the whole sky and look soft

9.4. Signify that snow or rain is coming

9.5. Ten Basic Cloud Types, n.d.)

10. clouds

10.1. Tobin, 2016)

11. Extending Concepts

11.1. Atmospheres (Windows, 2008)

11.1.1. Troposphere

11.1.1.1. Where weather occurs

11.1.2. Stratosphere

11.1.2.1. Where planes fly

11.1.3. Mesosphere

11.1.3.1. Where meteors burn up

11.1.4. Thermosphere

11.1.4.1. Where space shuttle orbits

11.1.5. Exosphere

11.1.5.1. The thin upper limit of the atmosphere

11.2. Season vs. Climate vs. Weather

11.2.1. Elliptical orbit

11.2.2. Axis

11.2.3. Angle of Insolation

11.3. Water Cycle

11.3.1. Condensation

11.3.2. Precipitation

11.3.3. Evaporation

11.3.4. Runoff

11.4. Weather Measurement Tools

11.4.1. Thermometer: temperature

11.4.2. Barometer: air pressure

11.4.3. Rain Gauge: measures the amount of rainfall

11.4.4. Anemometer: wind gauge

11.4.5. Wind Vane: wind direction

11.5. Fronts

11.5.1. Continental Arctic

11.5.2. Maritime Polar

11.5.3. Maritime Tropical

11.5.4. Continental Polar

11.5.5. Continental Tropical

11.6. Air Masses

11.6.1. Stationary Fronts

11.6.2. Occluded Fronts

11.6.3. Warm Fronts

11.6.4. Cold Fronts

11.7. Elements that Affect Weather

11.7.1. Air Pressure

11.7.2. Altitude

11.7.3. Temperature

11.7.4. Humidity

12. Cloud Formation

12.1. Clouds are white because they reflect light from the sun.

12.2. Gray clouds become so filled with water that they don’t reflect light.

12.3. Masses of clouds form shadows, which can also cause the clouds to look gray.

12.4. (Tobin, 2016)

13. How precipitation is formed (Melisurgo, 2016)

14. *Fog: Water droplets condensed on the ground; a cloud at ground level.

15. Crosscutting Concepts

15.1. Scale, Proportion, and Quantity

15.1.1. Standard units are used to measure and describe physical quantities such as weight and volume. (5-ESS2-2)

15.2. Systems and System Models

15.2.1. A system can be described in terms of its components and their interactions. (5-ESS2-1),(5-ESS3-1)

15.3. Connections to Nature of Science

15.3.1. Science Addresses Questions About the Natural and Material World.

15.3.1.1. Science findings are limited to questions that can be answered with empirical evidence. (5-ESS3-1)