Hi Heiko,
How do you feel following names?
high_genera_cloud_area_fraction:
Cirrus, Cirrostratus, Cirrocumulus
middle_genera_cloud_area_fraction:
Altostratus, Altocumulus, Nimbostratus
low_genera_cloud_area_fraction:
Stratus, Stratocumulus, Cumulus, Cumulonimbus
Even in the article http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud the meaning of "low
cloud" depends on contexts. You and I and US-NWS share the same definition
of "low cloud = St + Sc + Cu + Cb" as used in CL of SYNOP report. But these
clouds have different height, and some people use more coordinate-oriented
definition of "low cloud". WMO Intl Meteorological Vocabulary says "low
level cloud = St + Sc". I would say "low and cumuloform cloud", but some
seems to define "cumuloform = Cc + Ac + Cu + Cb".
So it's better to be creative on names to avoid ambiguity.
Eizi
----- Original Message -----
From: "Heiko Klein" <[email protected]>
To: "Jonathan Gregory" <[email protected]>
Cc: "TOYODA Eizi" <[email protected]>; <[email protected]>
Sent: Thursday, April 26, 2012 4:48 PM
Subject: Re: [CF-metadata] Standard_name for cloud-cover by phenomenon
Dear Jonathan,
On 2012-04-25 19:04, Jonathan Gregory wrote:
Dear Eizi and Heiko
I support your proposal to add "low_cloud_area_fraction",
"low_cloud_area_fraction", and "high_cloud_area_fraction".
(2) It's misunderstanding that whatever "cloud" located in high
layer becomes high cloud.
This sounds confusing to me, even though WMO may approve it. I would feel
uncomfortable about using this terminology in standard names. A user of
the data would very naturally assume "high cloud" means it is high, etc.
On the other hand, the cloud types Heiko mentioned (cumulus, altocumulus,
cirrus etc.) are used with consistent meanings, so these would be a
reliable
basis for CF vocabulary.
I don't like the names low/medium/high neither. I would much more like
something like 'cirro', 'alto' and 'strato'_cloud_area_fraction, but
unfortunately, the latin translations had been used already (and the
translations aren't even correct, since the alto-* clouds are not the high
clouds).
Low/medium/high cloud types are well established terminology, e.g.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud . Just because they are English rather
than Latin terms doesn't well mean that CF cannot use them?
Though this has been done very often, in my opinion, just translating an
ambiguous term like low into Latin doesn't make it less ambiguous.
Best regards,
Heiko
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