What is "cloud cover"

n. (context meteorology English) The percentage or fraction of the sky obscured by clouds.

n. the state of the sky when it is covered by clouds [syn: cloudiness, overcast]

Cloud cover (also known as cloudiness, cloudage or cloud amount) refers to the fraction of the sky obscured by clouds when observed from a particular location. Okta is the usual unit of measurement of the cloud cover. The cloud cover is correlated to the sunshine duration as the least cloudy locales are the sunniest ones while the cloudiest areas are the least sunny places.

The global cloud cover averages around 0.68 when analysing clouds with optical depth larger than 0.1. This value is lower when considering clouds with an optical depth larger than 2 (0.56) and higher when counting subvisible cirrus clouds.