Clouds form through a process of evaporation and condensation. Here's a breakdown:
The Cloud Formation Process
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Evaporation: The sun heats the Earth's surface, causing water from oceans, lakes, rivers, and land to evaporate. This means the liquid water turns into water vapor (a gas) and rises into the atmosphere. The reference highlights that "due to sunlight, the water on the earth's surface evaporates and ascends into the atmosphere."
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Ascent and Cooling: As the warm, moist air rises, it expands and cools.
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Condensation: As the air cools, the water vapor in the air condenses. This means it changes from a gas back into tiny liquid water droplets or ice crystals. This process typically happens around microscopic particles in the air, such as dust, pollen, or salt, which act as condensation nuclei. The reference states that "the water vapor in the air condenses to form tiny droplets after reaching a certain height."
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Cloud Formation: These tiny water droplets or ice crystals then collide and stick together, growing larger and heavier. When they become heavy enough, they form visible clouds that float in the air. As the reference describes, "these water droplets gather to form clouds, which float in the air."
In short, cloud formation is a continuous cycle of water evaporating, rising, cooling, condensing, and forming visible masses in the sky.
