Cumulonimbus: A vertically developed cumulus cloud, often capped by an anvil-shaped cirriform cloud. Also called a thunderstorm cloud, it is frequently accompanied by heavy showers, lightning, thunder, and sometimes hail, tornadoes or strong, gusty winds.

 

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Cumulonimbus: A vertically developed cumulus cloud, often capped by an anvil-shaped cirriform cloud. Also called a thunderstorm cloud, it is frequently accompanied by heavy showers, lightning, thunder, an . . . View Full Definition

Cumulonimbus Mammatus: A portion of a cumulonimbus cloud that appears as a pouch or udder on the under surface of the cloud. Although they do not cause severe weather, they often accompany storms. They may slowly . . . View Full Definition

Scud: Low fragments of clouds, usually stratus fractus, that are unattached and below a layer of higher clouds, either nimbostratus or cumulonimbus. They are often along and behind cold fronts and . . . View Full Definition

Roll Cloud: A relatively rare, low-level, horizontal, tube-shaped cloud. Although they are associated with a thunderstorm, they are completely detached from the base of the cumulonimbus cloud.

Mammatocumulus: An obsolete term for cumulonimbus mammatus, it is a portion of a cumulonimbus cloud that appears as a pouch or udder on the under surface of the cloud. Although they do not cause severe weat . . . View Full Definition

Thunderstorm: Produced by a cumulonimbus cloud, it is a microscale event of relatively short duration characterized by thunder, lightning, gusty surface winds, turbulence, hail, icing, precipitation, mode . . . View Full Definition

Wall Cloud: An abrupt lowering of a cloud from its parent cloud base, a cumulonimbus or supercell, with no visible precipitation underneath. Forming in the area of a thunderstorm updraft, or inflow area . . . View Full Definition

Waterspout: A small, weak tornado, which is not formed by a storm-scale rotation. It is generally weaker than a supercell tornado and is not associated with a wall cloud or mesocyclone. It may be observ . . . View Full Definition

Low Clouds: A term used to signify clouds with bases below 6,000 feet and are of a stratiform or a cumuliform variety. Stratiform clouds include stratus and stratocumulus. Cumuliform clouds include cumu . . . View Full Definition

Towering Cumulus: Another name for cumulus congestus, it is a rapidly growing cumulus or an individual dome-shaped clouds whose height exceeds its width. Its distinctive cauliflower top often mean showers bel . . . View Full Definition