How Heavy Is a Cumulus Cloud?

a Cumulus Cloud is estimated at

500 t (551 US tons)

Estimateorder-of-magnitude estimate: a 1 cubic kilometre cumulus cloud at about 0.5 g of droplets per cubic metre
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Using a log scale so small objects stay visible — the numbers stay real.

  • the Eiffel Tower10,100,000 kg

    official figures published by the tower operator: 7,300 t of metal frame, 10,100 t total including the lifts, shops and antennae (French metric tonnes)

  • a cumulus cloud500,000 kg

    order-of-magnitude estimate: a 1 cubic kilometre cumulus cloud at about 0.5 g of droplets per cubic metre

  • a blue whale150,000 kg

    adult; females larger than males; Antarctic subspecies up to 330,000 lb (149,685 kg), North Atlantic/North Pacific over 100,000 lb (45,359 kg)

  • an African elephant4,500 kg

    adult male 4,500–6,100 kg; adult female 2,000–3,500 kg

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Put it in perspective

Why weights differ

This is an estimate, not a measurement: real cumulus clouds vary enormously in size, so the weight scales with the assumed volume. The USGS figure comes from multiplying a 1 km³ cloud volume (1 billion cubic metres) by an estimated droplet density of 0.5 g/m³.

Sources

  1. [1] U.S. Geological Survey

    How Much Does a Cloud Weigh? | U.S. Geological Survey Water Science SchoolGovernment agency

    “Doing the math: 1,000,000,000 x 0.5 = 500,000,000 grams of water droplets in our cloud. That is about 500,000 kilograms or 1.1 million pounds (about 551 tons).”

    Value as published: 500,000 kilograms (1.1 million pounds) for a 1 cubic kilometre cloud · accessed 2026-11-11.

Last updated 2026-11-11.Report a correction (please include a source link).

Related objects

  • Halley's comet (nucleus)302,000,000,000 t (332,000,000,000 US tons)
  • the Moon7.35 × 10^22 kg (8.1 × 10^19 US tons)
  • Mars6.42 × 10^23 kg (7.07 × 10^20 US tons)
  • Earth5.97 × 10^24 kg (6.58 × 10^21 US tons)
  • Saturn5.68 × 10^26 kg (6.26 × 10^23 US tons)
  • Jupiter1.9 × 10^27 kg (2.09 × 10^24 US tons)
← Lighter: the International Space Station (420 t (463 US tons))Heavier: a Saturn V rocket (2,800 t (3,090 US tons)) →

Frequently asked questions

How much does a cumulus cloud weigh?

a Cumulus Cloud is estimated at 500 t (551 US tons) — order-of-magnitude estimate: a 1 cubic kilometre cumulus cloud at about 0.5 g of droplets per cubic metre.

How much is a cumulus cloud in pounds and ounces?

1,100,000 lb, which is 17,600,000 oz. In metric terms: 500,000 kg.

Is a cumulus cloud heavier than a blue whale?

Yes. a Cumulus Cloud is estimated at 500 t (551 US tons), while a blue whale is about 150 t (165 US tons) — roughly 3.3×.

Why do sources give different weights?

This is an estimate, not a measurement: real cumulus clouds vary enormously in size, so the weight scales with the assumed volume. The USGS figure comes from multiplying a 1 km³ cloud volume (1 billion cubic metres) by an estimated droplet density of 0.5 g/m³.

Where does this number come from?

Every source is listed at the bottom of this page with publisher, link, access date and a verbatim quote. Numbers are only published when a qualifying source can be verified.