The Weight of a Cloud

Clouds may appear light and fluffy, but they can actually be incredibly heavy. A cumulonimbus cloud (the type of cloud associated with thunderstorms) can weigh more than 1 million pounds (500,000 kg)  This weight comes from the water droplets or ice crystals that make up the cloud. Despite the fact that clouds are made of tiny droplets of water, the total amount of water they hold can be quite substantial, giving them a surprising amount of weight.

How Clouds Float

Even though clouds are extremely heavy, they still float in the sky. This is because of the updrafts of warm air that keep them suspended. The cloud’s water droplets are so small that they stay suspended in the air due to air currents, preventing them from falling. When these droplets combine and grow larger, they eventually fall as precipitation in the form of rain, snow, or hail. Shutdown123

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