Heavy downpore rainfall occurs from which clouds ?

Cumulonimbus clouds are the “thunderheads” that can be seen on a warm summer day and can bring strong winds, hail, and rain.

Key Points

Cumulo-nimbus clouds:

• Cumulonimbus (from Latin cumulus, "heaped" and nimbus, "rainstorm") is a dense, towering vertical cloud, forming from water vapor carried by powerful upward air currents.
• If observed during a storm, these clouds may be referred to as thunderheads.
• Cumulonimbus can form alone, in clusters, or along cold front squall lines.
• These clouds are capable of producing lightning and other dangerous severe weather, such as tornadoes and hailstones.
• Cumulonimbus progress from overdeveloped cumulus congestus clouds and may further develop as part of a supercell.
• Cumulonimbus is abbreviated Cb.

Additional Information Cumulus:

• They are generally formed at a height of 4,000 - 7,000 m.
• Cumulus clouds look like cotton wool.
• They exist in patches and can be seen scattered here and there.

Stratus:

• As their name implies, these are layered clouds covering large portions of the sky.
• These clouds are generally formed either due to loss of heat or the mixing of air masses with different temperatures.
• They occur in the middle levels of the atmosphere.

Nimbostratus clouds:

• Nimbostratus clouds are dark, grey, featureless layers of cloud, thick enough to block out the Sun.
• Producing persistent rain, these clouds are often associated with frontal systems provided by mid-latitude cyclones.
• These are probably the least picturesque of all the main cloud types.