Dense black clouds over Chachoengsao another sign of extreme weather, says biologist
The black clouds blocking the sun on the eastern side of Greater Bangkok on Monday were cumulonimbus clouds or dense vertical clouds formed from condensation in the lower troposphere.
In a Facebook post on Monday evening, the Thai Meteorological Department said: “When cumulonimbus clouds move quickly, they could generate arcus clouds, or a low, horizontal cloud formation expanding from rain clouds and can be seen from several kilometres away.
“The rain clouds on Monday morning formed above Chachoengsao and moved east to cover the Greater Bangkok area. Their thickness blocked most of the light from the sun. The clouds were so thick and dark that the sky looked like it was night,” the post read.
Marine biologist Thon Thamrongnawasawat put this cloud phenomenon to global warming.
“With oceans getting warmer, more vapour is being released into the air, which is forming thick clouds that hold a huge amount of water,” he said in a Facebook post. “These clouds are thicker than usual and could bring heavy downpours. Luckily, strong winds blew most of them away and we were left with light rain on Monday.
“This is just the start of the age of ‘extreme weather’ caused by decades of greenhouse gas emissions,” he said. “This year we have already seen it happen in Pakistan, where heavy rains for eight weeks have caused major floods that have killed more than 1,000 and displaced over 33 million.”
Thon, who is an assistant dean at Kasetsart University’s Faculty of Fisheries, called on people to do their part in reducing global warming.
“The storm is drawing closer. We all know what to do, so we should do it as much as we can. Compared to what is coming, this little inconvenience is nothing we can’t handle,” he said.
