Amazing and Rare Cloud Formations

Mammatus Clouds

Image credits: Vincent Fryhover

Image credits: Ken Lewis -

Image credits: HeavyLight.ca

Lenticular Clouds

Image credits: Jean-Michel Priaux

Image credits: Dementievskiy Ivan

Image credits: Brian Middleton

Undulatus Asperatus

Image credits: JΩSH

Image credits: wittap

Image credits: JΩSH

Fallstreak Hole

Image credits: lookseenseen

Image credits: mtnrockdhh

Image credits: ladigue_99

Polar Stratospheric Cloud

Image credits: Alan R. Light

Image credits: FotoLind

Image credits: FotoLind

Cirrus Kelvin-Helmholtz

Image credits: drdouglascordeiro.blogspot.com

Image credits: pfjc&pfjc2

Image credits: drdouglascordeiro.blogspot.com

Roll Clouds

Image credits: Kick Petroff

Image credits: apod.nasa.gov

Anvil Clouds

Image credits: Nicholas_T

Image credits: hide

Image credits: *Lampy*

Clouds can be remarkably beautiful but they are also very powerful. It is mind boggling to think that most clouds weigh more than 6,269 blue whales!

The calculation is based on a typical cumulus cloud (the most common cloud) which is about 1 cubic kilometer in volume and 2 km above ground, with an air density estimated to be at about 1.007 kg/m³ and the clouds (water droplets) are less dense and come close to 1.003 kg/m³ (which is why they float), and there are estimated to be 1,000,000 cubic meters of droplets in an average cumulus cloud.

The weight can be calculated using this equation (density by volume by a factor):

1.003 kg/m³x 1,000x 1 km³ = 1,003,000,000 kg

Which is over a billion kilograms of droplets or close to 2.2 billion pounds. Assuming a  blue whale is close to 160 (160,000 kg) tones in weight, a cumulus cloud weighs as much as 6,268.75 blue whales!

It’s truly amazing to think clouds weigh so much and that they are floating overhead!