Clouds of the Day - Sunday, May 17, 2020

Today was a change from the past several days. Just scroll down to see the difference in cloud types compared with today. Today featured stratus, one of ten principal cloud types. Stratus is a gray cloud layer with a nearly uniform base and is in the low cloud family. Stratus is not a precipitation type cloud except it will occasionally produce drizzle when the relative humidity is very high from the cloud base to the surface. It can be found in patches or a sky covering sheet. Stratus can obscure the Sun or sometimes the disk of the Sun is visible.

Here are four pictures of stratus as it appeared today.

Stratus with drizzle

Stratus with drizzle

Evening stratus are no different that mid-day stratus but the Sun low in the west created this dramatic scene. It looked a little ominous but these stratus were harmless, like all other stratus. The lightning made the difference.

Stratus in the evening. The sky was overcast giving a look that was completely different that the picture to the left.