Cirrus radiatus is a variety of
cirrus cloud
Cirrus ( cloud classification symbol: Ci) is a genus of high cloud made of ice crystals. Cirrus clouds typically appear delicate and wispy with white strands. Cirrus are usually formed when warm, dry air rises, causing water vapor deposition on ...
. The name ''cirrus radiatus'' is derived from
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
, meaning "rayed, striped". This variety of cirrus clouds occurs in parallel bands that often cover the entire sky and appear to converge at a single point or two opposite points on the horizon. Cirrus radiatus is often partly made up of
cirrocumulus
Cirrocumulus is one of the three main genus-types of high-altitude tropospheric clouds, the other two being cirrus and cirrostratus. They usually occur at an altitude of . Like lower-altitude cumuliform and stratocumuliform clouds, cirrocumulus s ...
or
cirrostratus
Cirrostratus is a high-level, very thin, generally uniform ''stratiform'' genus-type of cloud. It is made out of ice-crystals, which are pieces of frozen water. It is difficult to detect and it can make halos. These are made when the cloud takes ...
.
References
External links
International Cloud Atlas - Cirrus radiatus
Cirrus
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