Question
Entrainment of air into cumulus clouds results in
The correct answer is
decrease of buoyancy
Understanding Cloud Entrainment and Buoyancy
Entrainment is the process where surrounding environmental air mixes into a cloud's updraft.
Effects of Entrainment in Cumulus Clouds
When environmental air enters a cumulus cloud updraft, it typically:
- Is cooler and drier than the updraft air.
- Causes the cloud air to cool due to mixing.
- Induces evaporation of existing cloud droplets.
Impact on Buoyancy
Buoyancy in clouds is driven by the temperature difference between the updraft and the environment. Warmer air is more buoyant.
- The cooling effect from mixing with environmental air and droplet evaporation lowers the temperature of the air within the updraft.
- This reduced temperature makes the air inside the cloud less dense relative to the surrounding environment.
- Consequently, the decrease of buoyancy occurs.
Therefore, entrainment leads to a reduction in the cloud updraft's buoyancy.
Was this answer helpful?
Important Questions from Cloud Physics
- If the typical radius of a cloud droplet is $100$ times less than that of a raindrop, how many cloud droplets make a raindrop?
- Which of the following is true with increasing cloud thickness from $50\text{ m}$ to $10,000\text{ m}$?
- In the natural atmosphere with super-saturation rarely more than 1%, the most common form of nucleation associated with change of vapour to liquid is
- A: Hailstones are formed when graupel particles or large frozen raindrops are present in supercooled clouds
B: Accretion of super-cooled cloud droplets increases with hailstone growth
Given the above two statements choose the correct answer from the following. What is the shape of a 5 mm rain drop as it falls through the Earth’s atmosphere?
Need Expert Advice?
