cold cloud

meteorology

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July 16, 2026

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A cold cloud is a cloud containing ice crystals, where precipitation forms through cold-cloud processes, also known as the Bergeron-Findeisen mechanism. In these clouds, ice crystals grow directly from water vapor. This can happen if the vapor is supersaturated with respect to ice, or if it evaporates from supercooled water and deposits onto an ice crystal. Because the saturation vapor pressure of liquid water is higher than that of ice, ice crystals grow at the expense of liquid water. This rapid phase change allows ice crystals to grow quickly into snowflakes, which are large enough to fall. The shape of ice crystals depends on temperature and supersaturation, forming dendritic patterns or hollow columns. Ice crystals can also grow through aggregation, where crystals interlock, or riming, where supercooled water freezes onto them, forming graupel or hail.1

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atmosphere
Precipitation of ice
…is referred to as a cold cloud, and the resulting precipitation is said to be the product of cold-cloud processes. Traditionally, this process has also been referred to as the Bergeron-Findeisen mechanism, for Swedish meteorologists Tor Bergeron and Walter Findeisen, who introduced it in the 1930s. In this type of…
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…is referred to as a cold cloud, and the resulting precipitation is said to be the product of cold-cloud processes. Traditionally, this process has also been referred to as the Bergeron-Findeisen mechanism, for Swedish meteorologists Tor Bergeron and Walter Findeisen, who introduced it in the 1930s. In this type of…
Read More