A Lesson In Clouds

It is a typical summer day in the south – blistering hot temps in the mid 90s with suffocating humidity. The heat and humidity build throughout the day producing powerful summer storms. But not today. You have only to look up into the sky to try your luck at weather forecasting. Clouds give us a clue about what is going on in our atmosphere and how the weather might change in the hours or even days to come. Each type of cloud forms in a different way, and each brings its own kind of weather. Click here for a weather forcasting cloud chart.

Each evening when I come home from work, I give our plants and flowers a spritz of water while the pups sniff around the yard. The cicadas are audibly louder tonight as they cry for rain. The noise is deafening. Our black Scottish Terrier, Dianora, wilts in the heat while her canine counterparts high-tail to the cooler interior of the house. Wimps.

I watch the sky as clouds build and roll in the distant west. Stratocumulus clouds are low, puffy and gray. Most form in rows with blue sky visible in between them. Rain rarely occurs with stratocumulus clouds, however, they can turn into nimbostratus clouds. We need rain. But it looks like we won't get lucky tonight. Already the clouds have dissipated as the sun slowly sets in the west and the day loses its heat. Maybe tomorrow...