cirrostratus

American  

[sir-oh-strey-tuhs, -strat-uhs] / ˌsɪr oʊˈstreɪ təs, -ˈstræt əs /

noun

plural

cirrostratus

1. a cloud of a class characterized by a composition of ice crystals and often by the production of halo phenomena and appearing as a whitish and usually somewhat fibrous veil, often covering the whole sky and sometimes so thin as to be hardly discernible: of high altitude, about 20,000–40,000 feet (6000–12,000 meters).

---

cirrostratus British  

/ ˌsɪrəʊˈstrɑːtəs /

noun

1. a uniform layer of cloud above about 6000 metres (20 000 feet)

---

cirrostratus Scientific  

/ sîr′ō-străt′əs /

plural

cirrostrati

1. A thin, hazy, high-altitude cloud composed of ice crystals, often covering the sky in sheets and producing a halo effect around the sun. Cirrostratus clouds generally form between 6,100 and 12,200 m (20,000 and 40,000 ft).

2. See illustration at cloud

---

Other Word Forms

• cirrostrative adjective

Etymology

Origin of cirrostratus

First recorded in 1795–1805; cirro- + stratus

Example Sentences

Going through 70 years of books on the science of clouds, West explains why, depending on atmospheric conditions, contrails can either evaporate rapidly or persist and grow into sheets of cirrostratus.

From The Guardian • May 22, 2017

Alan Tyldesley has photographed bands of cirrus and cirrostratus with hints of the distinctive and rare Kelvin-Helmholtz cloud.

From BBC • Jul. 30, 2011

Rings around the moon, for example, are usually caused by thin layers of cirrostratus clouds, which often precede storm fronts.

From Time Magazine Archive

Although there are infinite shapes a cloud can take, the common classification system includes 10 types: cumulonimbus, cumulus, stratus, stratocumulus, nimbostratus, altostratus, altocumulus, cirrostratus, cirrocumulus and cirrus.

From Time Magazine Archive

The morning was cloudy and promised rain; but a N.W. wind broke through the clouds, which resolved themselves into cirrostratus, and we had heat again.

From Journal of an Expedition into the Interior of Tropical Australia by Mitchell, Thomas