What Caused The 'Wavy-Looking' Clouds Over Boston Monday?

BOSTON (CBS) -- If you were outside around midday Monday you may have caught a glimpse of some very cool, wavy-looking clouds. These are known as Altostratus Undulatus clouds!

Yup, that's a mouthful. Essentially, these are a mid-level cloud (hence the stratus part of the name), usually residing somewhere between 1-5 miles above ground level.

Stratus clouds are typically one of the more boring cloud types and many times appear as a blanket of grey and are rather featureless. They are often seen before or during a storm, rain or snow, and can hang around for long periods of time, especially in winter and spring. Those gray days that we all love to hate are almost always thanks to a layer of stratus.

Sometimes, like today, we are treated to a slight variation of the boring stratus clouds, undulatus! These are characterized by "undulations" within the stratus deck which look like waves. These waves may appear gentle and pleasing to the naked eye, but they represent an unstable atmosphere. Not something you want to see if you are about to take off in an airplane!

When traveling through this layer of clouds, you will undoubtedly feel a bit of turbulence. . . this is due to alternating layers of rising and sinking air in a short distance, causing the rolling wavy appearance.

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