Cumulonimbus

cloud

Cumulonimbus (from Latin

cumulus 'heaped', and
nimbus 'rainstorm') is a dense,
towering vertical cloud,[1] typically
forming from water vapor
condensing in the lower
troposphere that builds upward
carried by powerful buoyant air
currents. Above the lower portions
of the cumulonimbus the water
vapor becomes ice crystals, such
as snow and graupel, the
interaction of which can lead to
hail and to lightning formation,
respectively. When occurring as a
thunderstorm these clouds may be
referred to as thunderheads.
Cumulonimbus can form alone, in
clusters, or along squall lines.
These clouds are capable of
producing lightning and other
dangerous severe weather, such as
tornadoes, hazardous winds, and
large hailstones. Cumulonimbus
progress from overdeveloped
cumulus congestus clouds and
may further develop as part of a
supercell. Cumulonimbus is
abbreviated Cb.
 Cumulonimbus

Cumulonimbus incus

Abbreviation Cb.

Symbol

Genus Cumulonimbus
(heap, rain)

Species Calvus
Capillatus

Variety None

Altitude 500-16,000 m
(2,000-52,000 ft)

Classification Family D (Vertically

developed)
Appearance Dark-based storm
cloud capable of
impressive vertical
growth.

Precipitation Very common rain,

snow, snow pellets or
hail, heavy at times

Appearance

Cumulonimbus calvus cloud in

Monterrey, Mexico.

Partial view of a cumulonimbus cloud,

possibly an arcus cloud.
Towering cumulonimbus clouds
are typically accompanied by
smaller cumulus clouds. The
cumulonimbus base may extend
several kilometres (miles) across,
or be as small as several tens of
metres (yards) across, and occupy
low to upper altitudes within the
troposphere - formed at altitude
from approximately 200 to 4,000 m
(700 to 10,000 ft). Peaks typically
reach to as much as 12,000 m
(39,000 ft), with extreme instances
as high as 21,000 m (69,000 ft) or
more.[2] Well-developed
cumulonimbus clouds are
characterized by a flat, anvil-like
top (anvil dome), caused by wind
shear or inversion at the
equilibrium level near the
tropopause. The shelf of the anvil
may precede the main cloud's
vertical component for many
kilometres (miles), and be
accompanied by lightning.
Occasionally, rising air parcels
surpass the equilibrium level (due
to momentum) and form an
overshooting top culminating at
the maximum parcel level. When
vertically developed, this largest of
all clouds usually extends through
all three cloud regions. Even the
smallest cumulonimbus cloud
dwarfs its neighbors in
comparison.

Species

Cumulonimbus calvus: cloud with

puffy top, similar to cumulus
congestus which it develops from;
under the correct conditions it can
become a cumulonimbus
capillatus.
Cumulonimbus capillatus: cloud
with cirrus-like, fibrous-edged top.[3]
 Cumulonimbus calvus

A clearly developed cumulonimbus

fibrous-edged top capillatus

Types

Cumulonimbus flammagenitus
(pyrocumulonimbus): rapidly
 growing cloud forming from non-
atmospheric heat and
condensation nuclei sources such
wildfires and volcanic eruptions.

Pyrocumulonimbus with pileus

Supplementary features

Accessory clouds

Arcus (including roll and shelf

clouds): low, horizontal cloud
formation associated with the
leading edge of thunderstorm
outflow.[4]
 Pannus: accompanied by a lower
layer of fractus species cloud
forming in precipitation.[5]
Pileus (species calvus only): small
cap-like cloud over parent
cumulonimbus.
Velum: a thin horizontal sheet that
forms around the middle of a
cumulonimbus.[6]

Supplementary features

Incus (species capillatus only):

cumulonimbus with flat anvil-like
cirriform top caused by wind shear
where the rising air currents hit the
inversion layer at the tropopause.[7]
Mamma or mammatus: consisting
of bubble-like protrusions on the
underside.
Tuba: column hanging from the
cloud base which can develop into
a funnel cloud or tornado. They are
known to drop very low, sometimes
just 6 metres (20 ft) above ground
level.[6]
Flanking line is a line of small
cumulonimbus or cumulus
generally associated with severe
thunderstorms.
An overshooting top is a dome that
rises above the thunderstorm; it is
associated with severe weather.
Precipitation-based
supplementary features

Rain: precipitation that reaches the

ground as liquid, often in a
precipitation shaft.[8]
Virga: precipitation that evaporates
before reaching the ground.[6]
Arcus cloud (shelf cloud) leading a
thunderstorm

A cap (pileus) atop a congestus

 Incus with a velum edge

Mammatocumulus with drooping

pouches
 A funnel cloud (tuba) over the
Netherlands

Flanking line in front of a strong

thunderstorm
 An overshooting top is a dome of
clouds atop a cumulonimbus

Cumulonimbus calvus against

sunlight with rain falling beneath it as
a rain shaft.
Rain evaporating before reaching the
ground (virga)

Cumulonimbus cloud just after

sunset
Effects
Cumulonimbus storm cells can
produce torrential rain of a
convective nature (often in the
form of a rain shaft) and flash
flooding, as well as straight-line
winds. Most storm cells die after
about 20 minutes, when the
precipitation causes more
downdraft than updraft, causing
the energy to dissipate. If there is
sufficient instability and moisture
in the atmosphere, however (on a
hot summer day, for example), the
outflowing moisture and gusts
from one storm cell can lead to
new cells forming just a few
kilometres (miles) from the former
one a few tens of minutes later or
in some cases hundreds of
kilometres (miles) away many
hours later. This process cause
thunderstorm formation (and
decay) to last for several hours or
even over multiple days.
Cumulonimbus clouds can also
occur as dangerous winter storms
called "thundersnow" which are
associated with particularly
intense snowfall rates and with
blizzard conditions when
accompanied by strong winds that
further reduce visibility. However,
cumulonimbus clouds are most
common in tropical regions and
are also frequent in moist
environments during the warm
season in the middle latitudes.[9] A
dust storm caused by a
cumulonimbus downburst is a
haboob.

Hazards to aviation

Cumulonimbus are a notable

hazard to aviation due most
importantly to potent wind currents
but also reduced visibility and
lightning, as well as icing and hail if
flying inside the cloud. Within and
in the vicinity of thunderstorms
there is significant turbulence and
clear-air turbulence (particularly
downwind), respectively. Wind
shear within and under a
cumulonimbus is often intense
with downbursts being responsible
for many accidents in earlier
decades before training and
technological detection and
nowcasting measures were
implemented. A small form of
downburst, the microburst, is the
most often implicated in crashes
because of their rapid onset and
swift changes in wind and
aerodynamic conditions over short
distances. Most downbursts are
associated with visible
precipitation shafts, however, dry
microbursts are generally invisible
to the naked eye. At least one fatal
commercial airline accident was
associated with flying through a
tornado.

Life cycle or stages

Stages of a cumulonimbus cloud's life.

 Transformation from a mature
cumulus congestus cloud to a mature
cumulonimbus incus

In general, cumulonimbus require

moisture, an unstable air mass,
and a lifting force in order to form.
Cumulonimbus typically go through
three stages: the developing stage,
the mature stage (where the main
cloud may reach supercell status in
favorable conditions), and the
dissipation stage.[10] The average
thunderstorm has a 24 km (15 mi)
diameter and a height of
approximately 12.2 km (40,000 ft).
Depending on the conditions
present in the atmosphere, these
three stages take an average of 30
minutes to go through.[11]

Cloud types
Clouds form when the dew point
temperature of water is reached in
the presence of condensation
nuclei in the troposphere. The
atmosphere is a dynamic system,
and the local conditions of
turbulence, uplift, and other
parameters give rise to many types
of clouds. Various types of cloud
occur frequently enough to have
been categorized. Furthermore,
some atmospheric processes can
make the clouds organize in
distinct patterns such as wave
clouds or actinoform clouds.
These are large-scale structures
and are not always readily
identifiable from a single point of
view.

See also
weather
portal

Atmospheric convection
Atmospheric thermodynamics
Convective instability
 Hot tower
Lifted condensation level (LCL),
convective condensation level
(CCL), level of free convection
(LFC), and free convective layer
(FCL)
William Rankin
Ewa Wiśnierska

References
1. World Meteorological Organization, ed.
(1975). Cumulonimbus, International
Cloud Atlas (https://archive.org/details/
manualonobservat00worl/page/48) .
Vol. I. pp. 48–50 (https://archive.org/det
ails/manualonobservat00worl/page/4
 8) . ISBN 92-63-10407-7. Retrieved
28 November 2014.
2. Haby, Jeff. "Factors Influencing
Thunderstorm Height" (http://www.thew
eatherprediction.com/habyhints2/53
6/) . theweatherprediction.com.
Retrieved 15 July 2016.
3. World Meteorological Organization, ed.
(1975). Species, International Cloud
Atlas (https://archive.org/details/manua
lonobservat00worl/page/17) . Vol. I.
pp. 17–20 (https://archive.org/details/m
anualonobservat00worl/page/17) .
ISBN 92-63-10407-7. Retrieved
26 August 2014.
4. Ludlum, David McWilliams (2000).
National Audubon Society Field Guide to
Weather (https://archive.org/details/aud
ubonsocietyfi00ludl/page/473) . Alfred
A. Knopf. p. 473 (https://archive.org/det
ails/audubonsocietyfi00ludl/page/47
3) . ISBN 0-679-40851-7.
OCLC 56559729 (https://www.worldcat.
org/oclc/56559729) .
5. Allaby, Michael, ed. (2010). "Pannus" (htt
p://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.
1093/acref/9780199567669.001.0001/
acref-9780199567669-e-4082) . A
Dictionary of Ecology (4 ed.). Oxford
University Press. ISBN 9780199567669.
6. World Meteorological Organization, ed.
(1975). Features, International Cloud
Atlas (https://archive.org/details/manua
lonobservat00worl/page/22) . Vol. I.
pp. 22–24 (https://archive.org/details/m
anualonobservat00worl/page/22) .
ISBN 92-63-10407-7. Retrieved
26 August 2014.
7. "Cumulonimbus Incus" (http://epod.usr
a.edu/blog/2009/08/cumulonimbus-inc
us.html) . Universities Space Research
Association. 5 August 2009. Retrieved
23 October 2012.
8. Dunlop, Storm (2003). The Weather
Identification Handbook. The Lyons
Press. pp. 77–78. ISBN 1585748579.
 9. "Flying through 'Thunderstorm Alley' " (ht
tps://web.archive.org/web/2018061807
5755/https://www.nst.com.my/news/20
15/09/flying-through-%E2%80%98thund
erstorm-alley%E2%80%99) . New Straits
Times. 31 December 2014. Archived
from the original (https://www.nst.com.
my/news/2015/09/flying-through-%E2%
80%98thunderstorm-alley%E2%80%99)
on 18 June 2018.
10. Michael H. Mogil (2007). Extreme
Weather (https://archive.org/details/extr
emeweatherun0000mogi/page/210) .
New York: Black Dog & Leventhal
Publisher. pp. 210–211 (https://archive.
org/details/extremeweatherun0000mog
i/page/210) . ISBN 978-1-57912-743-5.
11. National Severe Storms Laboratory (15
October 2006). "A Severe Weather
Primer: Questions and Answers about
Thunderstorms" (https://web.archive.or
g/web/20090825000832/http://www.ns
sl.noaa.gov/primer/tstorm/tst_basics.ht
ml) . National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration. Archived from the
original (http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/prim
er/tstorm/tst_basics.html) on 25
August 2009. Retrieved 1 September
2009.

External links
Wikimedia Commons has media
related to Cumulonimbus clouds.
Clouds-Online.com Cloud Atlas
with many photos and description
 of the different cloud genera (htt
p://www.clouds-online.com)
MetOffice.gov.uk Learn about
thunderstorms and how
cumulonimbus clouds form (http
s://www.metoffice.gov.uk/learning/
learn-about-the-weather/thunder-a
nd-lightning)

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