Cloud tops lower than cloud base

[taxelrod]

I’m occasionally seeing forecast cloud tops lower than cloud base, for example the 1/4 18Z ECMWF forecast for 3pm PST on 1/5 near the southern Oregon coast.

[Suty]

@taxelrod Hello, can you please provide any examples with screenshots?

[taxelrod]

@Suty Here are a couple. I’ve seen examples where the tops are lower than the base by at least 2000 ft

[Suty]

@taxelrod Hello, I will forward this to colleagues for further investigation, so I can provide you with more info. Thank you for your patience.

[Suty]

@taxelrod Hello, I talked to our colleagues to get further info and I have some news for you. Cloud tops and Cloud base describe a different type of cloudiness. Cloud tops describes the top of convective clouds, and there can be a different type of cloudiness above these.

In contrast, cloud base (ceiling) describes the height above ground of the lowest cloud layer that covers most of the sky.
Here is the image that shows both of these types together:

[taxelrod]

Thanks for that clarification. I had no idea!