Cumulonimbus cloud

A dense cloud with strong vertical development, formed by rising moist air. It produces thunderstorms and can bring heavy rain, lightning, hail, strong winds, and sometimes tornadoes.

Convection: Heat transfer through the movement of fluids, including rising warm air and sinking cool air. Buoyant convection carries moist air upward to build the cloud’s vertical structure.
Water vapor: Water in its gaseous state in the atmosphere. Rising air supplies the moisture that condenses into cloud droplets.
Thunderstorm: A storm that produces lightning and thunder, usually with rain and sometimes hail or strong winds. Cumulonimbus clouds are the clouds that produce thunderstorms.
Cumulus cloud: A cloud with a puffy appearance and a relatively flat base, often formed by rising air. Small cumulus clouds show vertical growth before a storm develops.
Atmospheric instability: A state in which displaced air continues to rise or sink rather than returning to its original level. Instability lets lifted air keep rising and sustain deep thunderstorm growth.
Condensation: The change of a substance from gas to liquid. Cooling rising air causes water vapor to condense into droplets.
Severe thunderstorm warning: An official alert that severe thunderstorm conditions are occurring or imminent in a specified area. Forecasters issue these warnings for threats such as damaging winds and large hail.
Stratocumulus cloud: A low cloud layer made of rounded masses or rolls, often covering much of the sky. Its shallow, layered structure contrasts with a cumulonimbus cloud’s great vertical extent.
Latent heat: Energy absorbed or released during a change of state without changing temperature. Condensation releases heat that strengthens the cloud’s updrafts.
Lifting condensation level: The height at which a rising parcel of air becomes saturated and cloud droplets begin to form. It helps determine the cloud base when moist surface air rises.

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