Definition
The altitude at which a parcel of unsaturated air, lifted dry-adiabatically from the surface, becomes saturated and condensation begins. In practice, this is the height at which cumulus cloud bases typically form on a given day.
Plain English
The height where rising air cools enough for its moisture to start turning into cloud. It is the altitude where you would expect to see the bottom of fair-weather cumulus clouds.
Context Anchor
Seen in aviation weather discussions, cloud-base estimates, and convective weather planning.
Derivation
Lifted refers to a parcel of air being mechanically or thermally raised. Condensation comes from the Latin condensare, meaning to make thicker or denser, describing water vapor turning into visible droplets. Together the term names the level reached after lifting at which condensation first occurs.
Why Pilots Care
It indicates where clouds are likely to form, affecting visibility, turbulence, and icing risk during flight planning.
Grounding Statement
Picture warm surface air rising on a sunny afternoon. As it climbs it cools, and at some specific altitude it can no longer hold its moisture as vapor. That altitude, where the cloud base appears, is the Lifted Condensation Level.
Intuition Check
Do not read “level” as a fixed altitude that is the same everywhere. The lifted condensation level changes with the air’s temperature and moisture.
Example Sentence 1
With the surface temperature and dew point spread we observed, the lifted condensation level worked out to about 4,000 feet, which matched the cumulus bases we saw en route.
Example Sentence 2
Knowing the lifted condensation level helped the pilot anticipate where thermal lift would turn into cloud streets.