By Corey Fowler & Maddie Miller Cumulonimbus clouds By Corey Fowler & Maddie Miller

What is a cumulonimbus cloud? A cumulonimbus cloud comes from the Latin "cumulus" and "nimbus." It is a dense towering vertical cloud associated with thunderstorms and atmospheric instability, forming form water vapor carried by powerful upward air currents. They also look like puffy clouds that sometimes look like floating pieces of cotton.

What happens to the cloud? When the cumulonimbus cloud reaches the stratosphere the top of it flattens out like a lid. The top of the cloud is very cold and icy and contains water droplets. There are also ice crystals on top of the cloud and when the water droplets combined with the ice crystals it forms hail.

Where is the cloud mostly? Cumulonimbus clouds are usually cited as a cause of wild fires. The cumulonimbus cloud is common in the Western United States where land is more arid. It's closer to higher level clouds and forms in the lower part of the troposphere layer of the atmosphere.

What is the altitude of the cumulonimbus cloud? The minimum altitude of the cloud is 6,500 feet and the maximum altitude of the cloud is 60,000 feet. It's an often intense cloud and lasts around 20 minutes each storm. The sky turns dark on warm days and the cloud produces thunder, lightning, hail, and Heavy burst of rain. The cumulonimbus cloud is hard to spot directly above you.