Which cloud type is tall and gray, often associated with thunderstorms?

Which cloud type is tall and gray, often associated with thunderstorms?

• A. Fog
• B. Cirrocumulus
• C. Cumulonimbus
• D. Altocumulus

Answer: (C)

Recognizing cloud types by their vertical development and the weather they bring. A cloud that grows tall, gray at its base, often with an anvil-shaped top, signals strong convection and thunderstorm potential. This is cumulonimbus—a cloud that can reach from near the ground up through the troposphere and produce heavy rain, thunder, lightning, hail, and sometimes tornadoes. Fog sits at ground level and reduces visibility but isn’t a thunderstorm cloud. Cirrocumulus are high, small, patchy cloudlets and aren’t associated with thunderstorms, while Altocumulus are mid-level, layered or puffy clouds that can indicate unsettled weather but aren’t the tall, dense thunderstorm builders.

Recognizing cloud types by their vertical development and the weather they bring. A cloud that grows tall, gray at its base, often with an anvil-shaped top, signals strong convection and thunderstorm potential. This is cumulonimbus—a cloud that can reach from near the ground up through the troposphere and produce heavy rain, thunder, lightning, hail, and sometimes tornadoes. Fog sits at ground level and reduces visibility but isn’t a thunderstorm cloud. Cirrocumulus are high, small, patchy cloudlets and aren’t associated with thunderstorms, while Altocumulus are mid-level, layered or puffy clouds that can indicate unsettled weather but aren’t the tall, dense thunderstorm builders.