Cirrus Floccus and Cirrus Castellanus

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CIRRUS FLOCCUS AND CIRRUS CASTELLANUS.—Patches of dense cirrus may take on the form of cirrus floccus, with the upper portion of the patch forming rounded tufts, and the base portion becoming ragged. Dense cirrus patches may also grow turrets or battlements and become cirrus castellanus. Both cirrus floccus and cirrus castellanus may have ice crystal virga trails showing from the base of the cloud patch, and may be slightly larger than the standard 1°. (Also see cirrocumulus floccus and cirrocumulus castellanus.) Cirrostratus (CS) Cirrostratus clouds usually appear as a thin white veil over the sky. If the cirrostratus clouds are very thin and of uniform thickness, the only indication of their presence may be a faint halo, or a whitish tint to the sky. As long as the sun is higher than 30° above the horizon, cirrostratus clouds should not be able to block the sun; shadows should be apparent from sunlight shining through this cloud. When cirrostratus is low on the horizon, it tends to block the blue color of the sky more thoroughly because it is viewed on an angle, and it is commonly mistaken for denser altostratus. This also happens near sunrise and sunset with low sun angles. Cirrostratus cloud layers appear to move very slowly, and change shape very slowly. Typically, the edge of a cirrostratus layer is so indistinct that it is difficult to detect where the blue sky ends and the cloud begins. If movement or changes in shape are detectable during the observation period, the cloud near the horizon may well be altostratus. 1‐22 Cirrus floccus virga (Ci flo vir) .

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