What is Altostratus?
A middle cloud type within the B family in the international cloud classification. These clouds consist of water droplets and sometimes ice crystals. In mid-latitudes, the cloud base varies between 15,000 and 20,000 feet. They can range in color from white to gray and bluish. Altostratus clouds can be fibrous or layered and may occasionally form a thick layer that obscures the sun and moon. The halo phenomenon is not observed with this cloud type. It is a good indicator of precipitation or a precursor to a storm. Virga-type clouds fall into this category. They are often formed by variations in low altostratus. They can cause light rain and snowfall. Subtypes of altostratus include opacus, precipitans, and translucidus.
Schedule a Demo Today
A new era is starting with fundamentally new forecasting with unprecedented precision!
Contact UsGlossary
A thin, white cloud layer that is intertwined or separate, arranged in regular order, and does not cast a shadow.
A scale for estimating wind speed based on observed conditions of the sea or land. It ranges from 0 (calm) to 12 (hurricane)...
A bomb cyclone is a large mid-latitude storm that forms when a storm’s central pressure drops (i.e. “bombs out”), resulting...
The heating of the Earth by the sun causes daily changes in both the direction and speed of the wind. During the day, ground...
In a severe storm, with a swirling motion in its left rear quadrant, a vertically rotating column of air, often seen with...
Conduction is the transfer of heat or electricity through a material without the material itself moving. This occurs when...
Considerable cloudiness refers to weather conditions where a large portion of the sky is covered with clouds, but some clear...
A cloud of irregular appearance, composed of irregular cloud fragments.
Occurs when centers of high pressure and/or low pressure set up over a region in such a way that they prevent other weather...
A term used to identify clouds with a base height below 6,000 feet in the observer's direction. Stratiform clouds consist...