height

Taking the Earth's surface as the reference level, the height of the level, point, or object we wish to determine is the vertical distance between the two. Only in the particular case in which we are over the sea will height and altitude coincide, something that ceases to occur over dry land. The height of an object can also be identified with its vertical dimension, although, thinking of a cloud, in meteorological observations the height at which its base is located is considered as such (provided that its horizontal extent is significant), which is known as the cloud ceiling.