Cumulonimbus cloud

High school (ages 12+)
Environment & Earth

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Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/cumulonimbus-cloud

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the cloud classification?Cumulonimbus (Cb), a genus of atmospheric clouds characterized by significant vertical development
2. What is the thermodynamic driver?Convective instability, latent heat release from condensation, and strong updrafts
3. Why do cumulonimbus clouds make thunder and lightning?Lightning happens when ice crystals and graupel collide inside the cloud, building up electrical charges that discharge as bright flashes.
4. How do cumulonimbus clouds grow so tall?The cloud grows tall because the warm air rises, cools, and releases heat from condensation, which pushes the cloud higher up to 12–20 kilometers.

Adiabatic Cooling: Cooling of a gas or air parcel as it expands without exchanging heat with its surroundings.
Tropopause: The boundary in the Earth's atmosphere between the troposphere and the stratosphere.
Mesoscale Convective System (MCS): A large, organized system of thunderstorms that can produce widespread severe weather.