Understanding different cloud types?

[jabster8]

I was watching the weather forecast this morning and the weather man was explaining how cloud was moving over but in the next image not all of it contained rain.

Can someone tell me what equipment/method it is that the Met Office use to determine which clouds will result in it raining and which wont?

[Buenchico]

Simple visual identification of cloud types has, for many years, been used to associate them with certain weather patterns. See here:
http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/education/secondar y/teachers/clouds.html

In addition, satellite remote sensing can now be used to measure and analyse clouds. This series of web pages is relevant:
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Library/Remot eSensing/
(Skip to the 'remote sensing methods' page if just you want the key information).

Chris