International Cloud Atlas

The World Meteorological Organization’s reference system for identifying and classifying clouds and other atmospheric meteors. Its names and definitions standardize cloud observation worldwide.

Cloud genus: One of ten primary cloud categories defined by overall form and structure. The Atlas first sorts clouds into ten genera, including cirrus and cumulus.
Cloud observation: The systematic examination and recording of clouds and their characteristics. Atlas classifications depend on observing cloud form, height, and changes over time.
Luke Howard: An English chemist and meteorologist who proposed the cloud-naming system published in 1803. Howard’s Latin-based cloud names became the foundation for the Atlas’s genera.
Weather forecasting: The prediction of future atmospheric conditions from observations and scientific models. Cloud types help forecasters assess current weather and developing atmospheric systems.
Cloud taxonomy: The broader system of grouping clouds according to shared characteristics and relationships. The Atlas is a standardized cloud taxonomy designed for international observation.
Cloud species: A subdivision of a cloud genus based on shape or internal structure. Species add distinctions such as the anvil-shaped incus form of cumulonimbus.
Cloud identification: The process of assigning a cloud observation to a defined cloud type. Observers apply Atlas definitions to distinguish similar-looking genera and species.
Essay on the Modifications of Clouds: Luke Howard’s 1803 publication introducing a systematic classification and naming of clouds. This essay introduced the naming scheme later incorporated into international standards.
Meteorological observation: The measurement and description of atmospheric conditions for weather and climate services. Atlas terminology makes cloud observations consistent across observers and stations.
Cloud classification: The assignment of clouds to categories using visible or measured characteristics. The Atlas formalizes one widely adopted approach to classifying clouds.

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