Meteorology: Understanding the Atmosphere            Ackerman and Knox

.

 

An animation of global cloud cover as seen from the perspective of a satellite. Clouds are grey to white.   The colors represent the surface temperature, as described in the legend at the bottom of the figure.   The color scheme highlights middle and upper tropospheric clouds. April 13, 2002 through April 28, 2002.   From this animation, what do you notice about global cloud patterns? 

Current animations of cloud cover are available at the web page of the Space Science and Engineering Center.  (Here's a rotating globe view of cloud cover)