Clouds Part 2

As water evaporates from where it collects — from lakes, rivers, and so forth — it rises into the atmosphere where it expands and cools. Some of that water vapor condenses onto dust particles, forming tiny droplets. A cloud develops as billions of those droplets come together. Different types of clouds are associated with the weather. Cumulus clouds are known as fair-weather clouds — the puffy white kind. But when cumulus clouds develop into cumulonimbus clouds, those clouds can bring hail, thunderstorms, and even tornadoes. Stratus clouds are flat and thin; you can usually see the Sun through them. Cirrus clouds are made mostly out of ice crystals, seen high in the atmosphere, and almost never bring rain.