Nā Ao a me Nā Ua: Clouds and Rains
(Moisture Circulation)
Credit: Anela Benson, Loke Roseguo
Grade Level: 6-8
Learning Time: 1-2 Hours
Keywords: atmosphere, meteorology,
troposphere, hydrologic cycle, orographic effect
(Photo source: http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3135/2830081281_fd76a7c58e.jpg)
Summary & Goals:
 Students will learn how identify and classify clouds and predict weather.
 Students will be able to name and explain the different phases of the water cycle.
Background | Standards | Resources and Materials | Instructions | References
Background:
SCIENTIFIC
Meteorology is the scientific study of Earth’s atmosphere (the layer of gases that
surrounds Earth and is held in place by its gravity), which protects Earth’s life forms by
absorbing ultraviolet solar radiation, warming Earth’s surface through heat retention, and
distributing temperature extremes between day and night (technically the ocean is responsible
for heat regulation, the winds ‘assist’ in the movement of ‘heat’ around the globe). The
troposphere is both the largest (in terms of volume) and lowest (in terms of altitude) portion
of Earth’s atmosphere, comprising about 80% of its mass and extending to an average
maximum height of about 11 miles above Earth’s surface.
Since the troposphere also contains 99% of the atmosphere’s water vapor, it is the primary
location of weather-related clouds, which are visibly suspended masses of liquid droplets or
frozen crystals of water. The water (or hydrologic) cycle describes the continuous movement
of water above, on, and even below the surface of the Earth and consists of three main
physical processes:



Evaporation, the changing of a liquid to a gas;
Condensation, the changing of a gas to a liquid; and
Precipitation, when a liquid condenses enough to become susceptible to gravity.
These lessons have been developed in partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi College of Education and Polynesian Voyaging Society.
Funding has been provided by the Department of Education Native Hawaiian Education Program.
© Bishop Museum, 2014. All rights reserved.
1

These processes manifest within the water cycle when the Sun heats ocean water, causing
it to evaporate and rise. (Note: ice and snow can sublimate directly into water vapor, and
water can also transpire from plants as well as evaporate from soil.) Rising vapor cools
within the atmosphere and condenses into clouds as the result of one or more “lifting agents.”
One readily observable lifting agent in Hawaiʻi is the orographic effect, which occurs when an
air mass is forced from a low elevation to a higher elevation as it moves over rising terrain
(e.g., mountains and/or an island). As the air mass rises, it quickly cools, forming clouds
(lenticular or stationary lens-shaped clouds, in particular) and sometimes even rain on the
windward side of a mountain. When cloud particles condense and collide, they grow and
eventually fall or precipitate as rain (or snow, hail, or sleet) back into the ocean or onto land.
The resultant rain can vary in morphology, with smaller cloud droplets falling as tiny spheres
and larger raindrops falling in more oblate (i.e., hamburger-bun-like) shapes, even resembling
parachutes – but never in the stereotypical “teardrop” shape. In terms of relative intensity,
rain can be classified as light (<0.098 inches of precipitation per hour), moderate (0.098-0.39
in/hr), heavy (0.39-2.0 in/hr), or violent (>2.0 in/hr). Mount Waiʻaleʻale on Kauaʻi has
averaged more than 460 inches of rain per year over the last 32 years and is considered one of
the rainiest places on Earth, with a record high of 683 inches in 1982.
Meteorologists classify clouds primarily by their height (i.e., “high” being greater than
18,000 feet, “middle” being from 7,000 to 18,000 feet, and “low” being from near ground to
7,000 feet) and secondarily by their shape (using terms based on the system introduced in
1803 by British scientist Luke Howard):

Cumulus or cumulo-, meaning “pile” and describing heaped, lumpy clouds;
These lessons have been developed in partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi College of Education and Polynesian Voyaging Society.
Funding has been provided by the Department of Education Native Hawaiian Education Program.
© Bishop Museum, 2014. All rights reserved.
2

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Cirrus, cirri-, and cirro- meaning “hair” and describing high-level clouds that resemble
wispy locks of hair;
Stratus or strato- meaning “layer” and describing featureless clouds that blanket the sky;
Nimbus or nimbo- simply meaning “cloud” but referring specifically to low, gray rain
clouds as well as mid-level clouds; and
Alto meaning “high” and used to describe high or even middle clouds.
These words and prefixes are combined to describe different types of clouds, as shown in
the following illustration (Crawford, 1992).
(Crawford, 1992)
CULTURAL
The Hawaiian gods Lono and Kāne could manifest as clouds, with Lono being addressed
as “ke-ao-loa” (the long cloud) or “ke-ao-poko” (the short cloud) and Kāne as Kāne-i-kaʻōpua (Kāne, the horizon clouds) or Kāne-i-ke-ao (Kāne, the floating cloud). Kāne was also
the god of water, as illustrated in the oli (chant) He Mele no Kāne (The Water of Kāne):
These lessons have been developed in partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi College of Education and Polynesian Voyaging Society.
Funding has been provided by the Department of Education Native Hawaiian Education Program.
© Bishop Museum, 2014. All rights reserved.
3
According to revered Hawaiian historian David Malo, ao (clouds) resided six strata
above people’s heads in luna-o-ke-ao or “the firmament where the clouds float” (1951, p. 12)
and were named for their color and character:


A black cloud was termed eleele, if blue-black, it was called uliuli; if glossy black,
hiwahiwa or polo-hiwa. Another name for such a cloud was panopano. A white
cloud was called keokeo, or kea. If a cloud had a greenish tinge, it was termed
maomao; if a yellowish tinge, lena. A red cloud was termed ao-ula or kiawe-ula or
onohi-ula, red eye-ball. If a cloud hung low in the sky, it was termed hoo-lewa-lewa,
or the term hoo-pehu-pehu, swollen, was applied to it. A sheltering cloud was called
hoo-malu-malu; a thick black cloud, hoo-koko-lii; a threatening cloud, hoo-weli-weli.
(p. 12)
If a cloud was narrow and long, hanging low in the horizon, it was termed opua, a
bunch or cluster. There were many kinds of opua each being named according to its
appearance. If the leaves of the opua pointed downwards, it might indicate wind or
storm, but if the leaves pointed upwards, calm weather. If the cloud was yellowish
and hung low in the horizon it was called newe-newe, plump, and was a sign of very
calm weather. If the sky in the western horizon was blue-black, uli-uli, at sunset, it
was said to be pā-uli and was regarded as prognosticating a high surf, kai-koo. (pp.
12-13)
These lessons have been developed in partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi College of Education and Polynesian Voyaging Society.
Funding has been provided by the Department of Education Native Hawaiian Education Program.
© Bishop Museum, 2014. All rights reserved.
4
Malo (1951) goes on to share about ua (rain):
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Rain is an important phenomenon from above; it lowers the temperature. The
ancients thought that smoke from below turned into clouds and produced rain. (p. 14)
If there was an opening in the cloud, like the jaw of the a‘u (sword fish), it was called
ena and was considered a sign of rain. When the clouds in the eastern heavens were
red in patches before sunrise, it was called kahea (a call) and was a sign of rain. If
the cloud lay smooth over the mountains in the morning, it was papala and
foretokened rain. It was also a sign of rain when the mountains were shut in with
blue-black clouds, and this appearance was termed pala-moa. (p. 13)
If the sky was entirely overcast, with almost no wind, it was said to be poi-pu (shut
up), or hoo-ha-ha, or hoo-lu-luhi; and if the wind started up the expression hoo-kakaa, a rolling together, was used. If the sky was shut in with thick, heavy clouds, it
was termed hakuma; and if the clouds that covered the sky were exceedingly black, it
was thought that Ku-lani-ha-koi was in them, the place whence came thunder,
lightning, wind, rain, violent storms. (p. 13)
Some rainstorms have their origin at a distance. The kona was a storm of rain with
wind from the south, a heavy rain. The hoolua storm was likewise attended with
heavy rain, but with wind from the north. The naulu, accompanied with rain, is
violent but of short duration. (p. 14)
The rain called awa is confined to the mountains, while that called kualau occurs at
sea. There is also a variety of rain termed a-oku. A water-spout was termed wai-puilani. There were many names used by the ancients to designate appropriately the
varieties of rain peculiar to each part of the island coast; the people of each region
naming the varieties of rain as they deemed fitting. A protracted rainstorm was
termed ua-loa, one of short duration ua-poko, a cold rain ua-hea. (p. 14)
When it rained, if it were with wind, thunder, lightning and perhaps a rainbow, the
rainstorm would probably not continue long. But if the rain were accompanied by
wind, it would probably be a prolonged storm. When the western heavens are red at
sunset, the appearance is termed aka-ula (red shadow or glow) and is looked upon as
a sign that the rain will clear up. (p. 13)
VOYAGING
A Traditional and modern seafarers alike rely on natural observations to predict weather
before and during a trip to sea and, thus, ensure safe travels. Clouds, in particular, play an
crucial role in non-instrument navigation: they can foretell of impending weather conditions
as well as serve as potential indicators of land (e.g., stacked lenticular clouds above a land
mass, the reflected green tinge of an underlying lagoon), but they can also obscure other
crucial navigational information (e.g., the Sun’s position during the day or the stars’ positions
at night). Hawaiian pwo (master navigator) Nāinoa Thompson recalls knowledge he received
from Satawalese pwo Pius “Mau” Piailug about clouds:
Mau taught me to call clouds that look like this “the road to the wind.” I imagine at the
far horizon there is a factory producing the clouds and, like smoke from a haystack, they
These lessons have been developed in partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi College of Education and Polynesian Voyaging Society.
Funding has been provided by the Department of Education Native Hawaiian Education Program.
© Bishop Museum, 2014. All rights reserved.
5
follow the wind. This road indicates the wind is coming from the horizon. And because
the road is straight, the wind is steady. If you see the road curve, it means that the wind
direction will change and the way it curves will tell you the new direction. It is I
nteresting to me that meteorologists call this kind of phenomenon “cloud streets,” pretty
close to Mau’s term “Road of the Wind.” (PVS, 2012)
According to Nāinoa’s other teacher at the time, Bishop Museum planetarium presenter
Will Kyselka, “Reading squalls [i.e., sudden, sharp increases in wind speed possibly
accompanied by rain] is an art,” (1987, p. 145) which Mau demonstrates by attempting to
explain the principles he employs:
If the rain cloud is black, the wind is not strong. If the cloud is brown, the wind is
probably strong. If the cloud is high, there’s not much wind but maybe a lot of rain. If
it’s low, probably lots of wind. What you do is to sail up to it. The last clue is the color
of the line at the surface of the water beneath the cloud. If it is black you know it is a real
strong wind. If it’s the same color as the ocean near you then it is not a strong wind. If
the water is bumpy inside then you know there’s a strong wind. (p. 145)
David Seidman, author of The Complete Sailor (required reading for Polynesian
Voyaging Society crew-members-in-training), offers the following advice about weather
prediction based on clouds:
High clouds are associated with the upper atmosphere and distant weather systems up to
six hours away. If they are wispy and white, the weather will be fine. Lower clouds
relate to the current weather or that which is soon to come. If they are dense and dark,
change is imminent, usually for the worse. Notice if clouds are lowering or lifting, and if
they are gathering or dispersing. Lowering or gathering usually brings wet weather.
Lifting or dispersing means the weather will improve. A cloud’s color seems obvious:
the darker, the more dangerous. And a sharp-edged dark cloud is the most dangerous of
all. In shape, flat clouds are characteristic of stable air, while lumpy, well-rounded
clouds live in unstable air. (1995, p. 166)
Otherwise, clouds and rain can be welcome presences while voyaging. Since cool and
shady places onboard a waʻa are otherwise difficult to come by, clouds can offer temporary
relief from the harsh rays of the Sun, and after bathing for days or weeks using sea water
from buckets, light rain squalls serve as opportunities for salt-encrusted crew members to
enjoy cleansing, fresh-water showers.
BISHOP MUSEUM
More than 100 Hawaiian language newspapers published prolifically between 1834 and
the late 1940s and now serve as an invaluable historical source of information about climate
and ecosystems of Hawaiʻi (among other subjects) during the 19th and early 20th centuries.
The Hoʻolaupaʻi Newspaper Resources project at the Bishop Museum sought to preserve the
legacy of these nūpepa publications (totaling approximately 125,000 pages of text) by
These lessons have been developed in partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi College of Education and Polynesian Voyaging Society.
Funding has been provided by the Department of Education Native Hawaiian Education Program.
© Bishop Museum, 2014. All rights reserved.
6
digitally archiving them (www.nupepa.org).
The museum’s Jhamandas Watumull Planetarium lobby also houses Science On a Sphere
(SOS), a room-sized global display system that projects planetary data onto a six-footdiameter sphere: http://www.bishopmuseum.org/planetarium/sos.html. Most datasets in the
SOS catalog were created by NOAA and NASA and are freely available for public use.
Atmospheric datasets and displays can be accessed from
http://www.sos.noaa.gov/Datasets/list.php?category=Atmosphere.
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Standards:
Nā Honua Mauli Ola

‘Ike ‘Ōlelo (Language Pathway)

‘Ike Honua (Sense of Place Pathway)
GLOs

GLO 3 Complex Thinker: 3.2 Considers multiple perspectives in analyzing and solving a
variety of problems.

GLO 4 Quality Producer: 4.1 Recognizes and understands what quality performances and
products are.

GLO 5 Effective Communicator: 5.1 Listens to, interprets, and uses information
effectively; 5.3 Reads with understanding various types of written materials and literature
and uses information for various purposes; 5.5 Observes and makes sense of visual
information.

GLO 6 Effective User of Technology: 6.2 Uses a variety of technologies to access and
manage information and to generate new information; 6.4 Uses the appropriate technologies
for communication, collaboration, research, creativity, and problem solving.
HCPS III
Grade 8 --Earth and Space Sciences

SC.ES.8.1-- Describe how elements and water move through solid Earth, the oceans,
atmosphere, and living things as part of geochemical cycles.

SC.ES.8.4-- Describe how heat and energy transfer into and out of the atmosphere and their
involvement in global climate
These lessons have been developed in partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi College of Education and Polynesian Voyaging Society.
Funding has been provided by the Department of Education Native Hawaiian Education Program.
© Bishop Museum, 2014. All rights reserved.
7

SC.ES.8.6-- Describe how winds and ocean currents are produced on the Earth's surface

SC.ES.8.7-- Describe climate and weather patterns associated with certain geographic
locations and features

SC.8.8.6—Explain the relationship between density and convection currents in the ocean and
atmosphere.
Common Core
Grades 6-8 Reading Literacy Science & Technical

6-8.RST.3: Follow precisely a multistep procedure when carrying out experiments, taking
measurements, or performing technical tasks.

6-8.RST.7: Integrate quantitative or technical information expressed in words in a text with a
version of that information expressed visually.

6-8/RST.9: Compare and contrast information gained from experiments, simulations, video
or multimedia sources with that gained from reading a text.
Grades 6-8 Writing

6-8.W.2: Write informative/explanatory text to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts,
and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content.

6-8.W.7: Conduct short research projects to answer a question, drawing on several sources
and refocusing the inquiry when appropriate.
Grades 6-8 Speaking/Listening

6-8.SL.2: Interpret information presented in diverse media and formats and explain how it
contributes to a topic, text, or issue under study.

6-8.SL.5: Include multimedia components and visual displays in presentations to clarify
information.
NGSS
Middle School Weather and Climate—Students will understand the following DCI:

MS-ESS2.C: The Roles of Water in Earth’s Surface Processes

MS-ESS2.D: Weather and Climate
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These lessons have been developed in partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi College of Education and Polynesian Voyaging Society.
Funding has been provided by the Department of Education Native Hawaiian Education Program.
© Bishop Museum, 2014. All rights reserved.
8
Resources and Materials:
Animations & Tutorials:
 S’COOL online tutorial for cloud types (NASA): http://scienceedu.larc.nasa.gov/SCOOL/tutorial/clouds/cloudtypes.html.
 The Water Cycle (Hawaiʻi Board of Water Supply): http://www.hbws.org/watercycle/
Databases:
 Hawaiian Language Newspapers: www.nupepa.org
 NOAA National Weather Service:
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/view/national.php?thumbs=on.
 Rainfall Atlas of Hawaiʻi (Geography Department, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa):
http://rainfall.geography.hawaii.edu/interactivemap.html
Demonstration Materials:
 warm water
 ice
 glass jar
 metal tray (wide enough to completely cover the opening of the jar)
 matches
Electronic Equipment:
 laptop
 projector
Reading Materials:
 Non-Instrument Weather Forecasting:
http://pvs.kcc.hawaii.edu/ike/hookele/weather_forecasting.html.
 The Water of Kāne (in Hawaiian and English): http://www.sacredtexts.com/pac/ulh/ulh45.htm
Visual Materials:
 NOAA/NASA Introduction to Clouds & Sky Watcher Chart: http://scienceedu.larc.nasa.gov/cloud_chart/PDFs/NOAA-NASA-CloudChart.pdf.
These lessons have been developed in partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi College of Education and Polynesian Voyaging Society.
Funding has been provided by the Department of Education Native Hawaiian Education Program.
© Bishop Museum, 2014. All rights reserved.
9

NOAA/NASA Science On a Sphere Atmospheric Datasets:
http://www.sos.noaa.gov/Datasets/list.php?category=Atmosphere.
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Instructional Procedures:
1. ENGAGE:
 Ask students how clouds are formed, accepting a variety of responses, and then
explain that clouds form from the condensation or freezing of water vapor.
Rhetorically ask if the students would like to see this phenomenon for themselves.
These lessons have been developed in partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi College of Education and Polynesian Voyaging Society.
Funding has been provided by the Department of Education Native Hawaiian Education Program.
© Bishop Museum, 2014. All rights reserved.
10

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Fill the jar with warm water until it reaches a depth of 2 inches and then stir the
water.
Light a match, blow it out, and drop it into the water in the jar.
Once the resultant smoke clears, place the metal tray (containing the ice) on top of the
jar opening.
Have the students watch as a cloud forms near the top of the jar (and directly below
the tray). Ask the students what they think will happen if the metal tray is removed.
2. EXPLORE:
 Show the students the S’COOL online tutorial for cloud types.
 Divide the students into pairs, distributing copies of the NASA/NOAA Introduction to
Clouds and Sky Watcher Chart to each pair.
 Encourage students to use the following diagnostic process (based on Dr.
Cartwright’s Cloud Identification Guide):
1. Is it raining?
 If YES (especially with thunder, lightning, and/or heavy rain), your
cloud is a cumulonimbus.
 If YES (but only drizzling with small raindrops), your cloud is a
nimbostratus.
 If NO, go to number 2.
2. Is it high and wispy (like a horse’s tail)?
 If YES, your cloud is cirrus.
 If NO, go to number 3.
3. Is it flat and layered, puffy and bumpy, or a nearly solid layer of large puffs?
 If FLAT & LAYERED, go to number 4.
 If PUFFY & BUMPY, go to number 5.
 If the size of the LARGE PUFFS are the same as your fist (or larger),
your cloud is a stratoculumus.
4. Is your cloud high or low? If high, is it thin or thick?
 If HIGH & THIN (and the sun can still cast distinct shadows), your
cloud is a cirrostratus.
 If HIGH & THICK (and there are hardly any shadows), your cloud is
an altostratus.
 If LOW (and covering most of the sky), your cloud is a stratus.
5. Compare the size of the cloud’s puffs to different parts of your hand.
 If the size of your FINGERNAIL, your cloud is a cirrocumulus.
 If the size of your THUMBNAIL, your cloud is an altocumulus.
 If the size of your FIST, your cloud is a cumulus.

Take the class outside and spend a few minutes observing clouds. Using the
NASA/NOAA reference sheets as well as David Malo’s descriptions, have students
record their observations.
3. EXPLAIN:
These lessons have been developed in partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi College of Education and Polynesian Voyaging Society.
Funding has been provided by the Department of Education Native Hawaiian Education Program.
© Bishop Museum, 2014. All rights reserved.
11

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Review the water cycle.
Distribute the words to He Mele no Kāne and have students read it aloud together.
Afterwards, have students circle the words that reference different forms of water.
Have students illustrate (using imagery from their excursion outdoors), label, and
explain the water cycle using terminology from He Mele no Kāne.
4. ELABORATE/EXTEND:
 Task students with taking pictures of unusual clouds and weather phenomena that
they witness (outside of class) within the next week. Have them identify what
meteorological features are manifesting (using a variety of English and Hawaiian
terms) and share their findings with the class.
 Have students create slideshows (or other learning tools) that teaches about clouds
and weather prediction by incorporating scientific concepts and Hawaiian
terminology (similar to Droplets: The Kiwi Kids Cloud Identification Guide, which
incorporates
Māori
terms
and
can
be
found
at
http://scienceedu.larc.nasa.gov/SCOOL/pdf/Kiwi_Kids_Cloud_Guide.pdf).
5. EVALUATE:
 Students will assess the quality of each other’s presentations as well as the quality and
completeness of the data being analyzed and presented.
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References
Atmosphere. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere.
Atmosphere of Earth. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth%27s_atmosphere.
Cartwright, T. (2013). Cloud identification guide. Retrieved from
http://wvscience.org/clouds/Cloud_Key.pdf.
Cloud. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud.
Crawford, W. (1992). Mariner’s weather. New York City, NY: Norton.
Giambelluca, T.W., Q. Chen, A.G. Frazier, J.P. Price, Y.-L. Chen, P.-S. Chu, J.K. Eischeid, and
D.M. Delparte, 2013: Online Rainfall Atlas of Hawai‘i. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc. 94, 313316, doi: 10.1175/BAMS-D-11-00228.1. Retrieved from
These lessons have been developed in partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi College of Education and Polynesian Voyaging Society.
Funding has been provided by the Department of Education Native Hawaiian Education Program.
© Bishop Museum, 2014. All rights reserved.
12
Kamehameha Schools. (2011). Ahupuaʻa maps. Honolulu, HI: Kamehameha Publishing.
Kyselka, W. (1987). An ocean in mind. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawaiʻi Press.
Malo, D. (1951). Hawaiian antiquities (2nd ed.; N. B. Emerson, Trans.). Honolulu, HI: Bishop
Museum.
NASA. (2012). Cloud cookery [PDF document]. Retrieved from http://scienceedu.larc.nasa.gov/SCOOL/pdf/Cloud_Cookery.pdf.
Pacific Resources for Education and Learning (PREL). (1996). Reading the wind: Navigation
and the environment in the Pacific [Teacher’s guide]. Honolulu, HI: Pacific Resources
for Education and Learning. Retrieved from
http://www.ethnomath.org/resources/prel1996.pdf.
Polynesian Voyaging Society (PVS). (2012). Non-instrument weather forecasting. Retrieved
from http://pvs.kcc.hawaii.edu/ike/hookele/weather_forecasting.html.
Pukui, M.K. and Elbert, S. H. (1986). Hawaiian dictionary (Rev. ed.). Honolulu, HI: University
of Hawai‘i Press.
Rain. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rain.
Seidman, D. (1995). The complete sailor (2nd ed.). Camden, ME: International Marine.
Troposphere. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troposphere.
Water cycle. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_cycle.
Back to top
These lessons have been developed in partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi College of Education and Polynesian Voyaging Society.
Funding has been provided by the Department of Education Native Hawaiian Education Program.
© Bishop Museum, 2014. All rights reserved.
13