“I wandered lonely as a cloud /That floats on high o’er vales and hills,” say William Wordsworth. This is among the most famous poem lines in English literature, exemplifying Romantic era’s longing for nature and natural beauty.

The image of clouds, its whiteness and fluffiness during a warm sunny day is definitely a scene that appeals to our vision. It evokes bright, fun, and happy moods, a conventional sign of ideal and positive vibes. But where do clouds come from? And How Do Clouds Form, in the first place?

The formation of clouds necessitate three major atmospheric components. First, compounds of hydrogen and oxygen, second, different dust particles, and third, atmospheric pressure or temperature changes. The water that goes to atmosphere comes from the earth’s water surfaces like oceans, seas, and other inland water formation. Of course, when water evaporates to the atmosphere, we do not exactly see liquids going up the sky. Water molecules actually combine with air in their process of being absorbed by the atmosphere, and that’s why they are invisible to our eyes. When these water molecules have already reached their appointed places in the sky, they will gather and condense into clouds.

Dust particles is an important component why we see the whiteness of clouds. Some examples of these dust particles are those that come from transport vehicles, oceanic sea spray, volcanoes, and bacteria. These dust particles help the water molecules in the sky to condense and form clouds. Dust particles play a huge role in the whiteness of clouds, and the formation of their shapes and textures. And together with dust particles, the pressure and temperature changes in the skies also affect the formation of clouds. These atmospheric changes can dictate where clouds should be concentrated and what types of clouds should be formed given the amount of water molecules going up the air.