The study compares selected characteristics of cloud cover occurring over the centre of Kraków (urban station – Botanical Garden) and in rural areas (Kraków-Balice station) to demonstrate the impact of anthropogenic factors on cloud cover. Additionally, this aim was achieved by analysing the occurrence of specific clouds related to human activity (homogenitus), which form over the chimneys of power plants and industrial facilities or are associated with air traffic. Nephological data from two weather stations were used: one located in the Botanical Garden, belonging to the Department of Climatology, Institute of Geography and Spatial Management of the Jagiellonian University (IGiGP UJ), and the other situated at the Kraków Airport in Balice, belonging to the Institute of Meteorology and Water Management - National Research Institute (IMGW-PIB). The results indicate diverse interactions between the city and cloud cover. On one hand, there is less cloud cover compared to rural areas, especially during the cooler half of the year. On the other hand, during the summer months around midday, urbanized areas exhibit greater cloud cover, particularly from convective clouds. The analysis of specific clouds forming near industrial plants and combined heat and power plants indicates a lowering of cloud bases and an increase in cloudiness due to human activity. Moreover, the location of the airport near the city and the intensity of air traffic are related to the increasingly observed contrails, which under favourable conditions transform into special clouds.
