Clouds

Clouds… fluffy, white, marvelous things. Perhaps nothing else represents freedom quite like a cloud. They are symbols of optimism, happiness and escape from the monotony of everyday earthly life. Who among us has not delighted to being on a mountain, high among the clouds or flying through them on airplanes? Clouds live in the sky above earth and somewhere below heaven. They are mysterious things from that "in-between land" of the sky. Like fog, we cannot touch them for they disappear as quickly as we reach out.

In many ancient cultures, clouds symbolize the sky. For some cultures, clouds are not just a symbol of the heavenly realm but of fertility as well. Clouds bring rain, which makes crops grow, which feed people to keep them alive. They are (of course) important symbols to agrarians. Ask any farmer ... they know clouds well, unlike city people who just look at them for fun.

When analyzing dreams, seeing fluffy white clouds signifies inner peace and spiritual harmony. An issue in your waking life may be clearing up. Seeing gray and gloomy clouds in your dream signifies depression or anger. Your decisions may be clouded in some way. Seeing menacing or stormy clouds in your dream indicates an impending eruption of emotions. It also represents a lack of wisdom or confusion in some situations. Luke Howard (1772-1864), an English manufacturing chemist and pharmacist, developed the basics of cloud classification. Like many who observed and studied the atmosphere at that time, Howard was an amateur meteorologist. He produced several landmark works including On the Modification of Clouds, The Climate of London, and Seven Lectures on Meteorology, the first textbook on weather.

Cumulus Clouds	Mountain-Induced Stratiform

Cirrus Clouds	Stratus Clouds

Clouds form when water vapor (water that has evaporated from the surface of the Earth) condenses (turns into liquid water or solid ice) onto microscopic dust particles (or other tiny particles) floating in the air. This condensation (cloud formation) happens when warm and cold air meet, when warm air rises up the side of a mountain and cools as it rises, and when warm air flows over a colder area, like a cool body of water. This occurs because cool air can hold less water vapor than warm air, and excess water condenses into either liquid or ice.

There are four basic types of clouds:

Cumulus (Latin for heap)

Stratus (Latin for layer)

Cirrus (Latin for curl of hair)

Nimbus (Latin for rain)

Clouds are defined by both the way they look and how high they are in the atmosphere. For example, cirro is a prefix given to high-altitude clouds (above 20,000 feet). Alto is a prefix given to mid-altitude clouds (between 6,000 and 20,000 feet). There is no prefix for low-altitude clouds. When clouds are by the ground we call them fog. Nimbo as a prefix, or nimbus added as a suffix, to a cloud name indicates that the cloud can produce precipitation (rain, snow, or other forms of falling water). Cumulo refers to piled-up clouds. Strato refers to flat, wide, layered clouds.

If you can't be outside enough to suit you, try buying one of these incredible images made by meteorologists who are also artists! Hang it up in your office! You'll probably feel better.

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