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cirrus cloud

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cirrus cloud

[′sir·əs ¦klau̇d]
(meteorology)
A principal cloud type composed of detached cirriform elements in the form of white, delicate filaments, of white (or mostly white) patches, or narrow bands. Abbreviated Ci.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
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References in periodicals archive
Flatau, "The relevance of the microphysical and radiative properties of cirrus clouds to climate and climatic feedback," Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, vol.
Atmospheric scientists have known that when compounds such as sulfates dissolve in water droplets, those tiny airborne solutions can freeze and create cirrus clouds. Also, scientists have known that dust particles can serve as airborne platforms on which vapor freezes.
Another the natural cirrus cloud coverage ([b.sub.cirrus]) from contrail parameterization in ECHAM4 is also given by (Sudqvist et al., 1989) the following:
How cirrus cloud properties and occurrence rates may respond, however, is an equally compelling question to monitor in coming years compared with such newsworthy instances.
A cirrus cloud's ice particles come in several shapes, says Liou.
When cirrus clouds contain ice crystals with the proper orientation, a pair of these parhelia (Greek for "beside the Sun") can appear 22[degrees] or more to either side of the Sun, sometimes on a sky-circling band called the parhelic circle.
Using backward trajectory modeling, ML-CIRRUS shows that the climatic import of a given cirrus cloud varies not just because some cirrus are manmade (contrails) and some are not.
They can also act as a catalyst for the formation of further wispy cirrus cloud.
The development of cirrus cloud forecast products based upon operational forecasts from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) was essential to direct the aircraft into selected cirrus cloud systems.
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