High Clouds

The barking of the dog will not distrub the clouds - Berber Proverb

High Clouds


Clouds in this group:


  • Cirrus
  • Cirrostratus
  • Cirrocumulus



Cirrus (Ci)


These form above 18,000 feet (5,486 m), and are the clouds that take the form of delicate white filaments, strands, hooks, and are often transparent. The feathery strands of cirrus, called mares tails, often warn of the approach of a warm front marking the advance of a storm system. In cold climates when they begin to multiply and are accompanied by winds blowing steadily from a northerly direction they indicate an oncoming blizzard.





Cirrostratus (Cs)


Cirrostratus clouds form a traslucent, whitish veil of either fiborus or smooth apperance that totally or partially covers the sky, often developing into a featureless sheet that stretches across the entire sky. Cirrostratus clouds can produce haloes around the sun or moon while not entirely blocking their light.





Cirrocumulus (Cc)


Cirrocumulus appear in thin white patches, sheets, or layers without shading. They are composed of very small tufts, grains, or ripples that may be merged or seperate and are arranged in a wavelike or dappled structure. Cirrocumulus clouds indicate good weather. To some observers, their wavelike pattern resembles the scales of a mackerel, called a mackerel sky.


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