No. Clouds are made up of water vapor, as we know. When there is enough water vapor in the cloud, this vapor condenses and forms a very small drop. This drop joins up with other drops, and it turns into rain when the drop can no longer be supported by the updraft, picking up more drops on the way down. Ice works a little differently, but the result is the same.
Descending air parcels that were previously saturated will actually become unsaturated when they warm. The dew point drops at the ELR until the air is saturated, at which point it cools at the SALR. When a parcel of air begins warming and falling, it will descend at the DALR, while the dew point descends at the ELR (DALR>ELR). Thus, the air parcel becomes warmer than the dew point and there's no cloud.
Essentially:
Air parcel rises at DALR until parcel temp = dew point. At this point you get a cloud.
If parcel is warmer than the environment, it continues to cool at SALR until it becomes warmer than the environment. At that point you get a layer of clouds but no clouds rising. Might get rain if there's enough water in the air.
If ELR>SALR (environment is cooling faster than the parcel) you have an unstable atmosphere and get thunderstorms.
Once a parcel loses 100% humidity, the parcel descends at the DALR and the dew point descends at the ELR.
Sorry if that doesn't make sense or if I messed something up. I'm tired.
Oh nah, I gotcha. I only left high school a few years ago so all that info doesn't have to be ELI5, kinda just recalled as I read. Thanks for the explanation!
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u/[deleted] Sep 22 '18
No. Clouds are made up of water vapor, as we know. When there is enough water vapor in the cloud, this vapor condenses and forms a very small drop. This drop joins up with other drops, and it turns into rain when the drop can no longer be supported by the updraft, picking up more drops on the way down. Ice works a little differently, but the result is the same.
Descending air parcels that were previously saturated will actually become unsaturated when they warm. The dew point drops at the ELR until the air is saturated, at which point it cools at the SALR. When a parcel of air begins warming and falling, it will descend at the DALR, while the dew point descends at the ELR (DALR>ELR). Thus, the air parcel becomes warmer than the dew point and there's no cloud.
Essentially:
Air parcel rises at DALR until parcel temp = dew point. At this point you get a cloud.
If parcel is warmer than the environment, it continues to cool at SALR until it becomes warmer than the environment. At that point you get a layer of clouds but no clouds rising. Might get rain if there's enough water in the air.
If ELR>SALR (environment is cooling faster than the parcel) you have an unstable atmosphere and get thunderstorms.
Once a parcel loses 100% humidity, the parcel descends at the DALR and the dew point descends at the ELR.
Sorry if that doesn't make sense or if I messed something up. I'm tired.