What weather conditions are expected to precede an approaching cold front?

An approaching cold front is typically associated with the development of certain weather conditions that are indicative of its presence. One of the primary characteristics of the weather preceding a cold front is the encounter of warmer, moist air that is being forced upward as the colder, denser air moves in. This uplift of warm air can lead to the formation of cumulus clouds, which often develop into larger cloud formations, creating scattered to broken ceilings.

During this phase, visibility is usually still quite good because the more severe weather, such as heavy rain or thunderstorms associated with the cold front, has not yet occurred. Therefore, the indication of scattered to broken cloud ceilings with cumulus formations and good visibility accurately reflects the atmospheric conditions leading up to a cold front.

The other options depict weather conditions typically associated with different phases of a cold front rather than the preceding conditions. For example, widespread cloud and heavy rain are actually associated with the passage of the cold front rather than what precedes it. Clear skies with high pressure generally indicate stable weather, which is not characteristic of an approaching cold front. Dense fog and high humidity can occur in certain situations but are not indicative of a cold front's approach, as the dynamics of the cold front typically disrupt such conditions.