The Cryogenic Infrared Spectrometers and Telescopes for the Atmosphere (CRISTA) instrument observed thin cirrus clouds at and above the tropopause during its two missions in November 1994 and August 1997. A simple cloud detection scheme was developed for extinctions greater than 2 ¿ 10-3 km-1 through analysis of the measured infrared spectra in the 12-¿m range. Horizontal and vertical distributions of cloud occurrence frequencies are in good agreement with the Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment (SAGE) II subvisual cirrus cloud (SVC) climatology as well as SAGE measurements for the 1997 period. Seasonal variations, strong longitudinal variability, and indications of enhanced cloud occurrence frequencies in separated regions caused by El Ni¿o events were detected in the CRISTA data set. A substantial day-to-day variability could be found throughout the tropics, and several regions with enhanced variability have been identified. In addition, a significant amount of cloud was found above the midlatitude tropopause. Backward trajectories in relation to outgoing longwave radiation (OLR) measurements and cloud observation in the troposphere by meteorological satellites suggest that about three fourths of the high clouds (>15 km) observed by CRISTA in the tropics stem from deep convection systems and the outflow of these systems. This would imply that on the order of at least one fourth of the observed cloud events are originated by other mechanisms, such as in situ formation due to cooling events on synoptic and/or gravity wave scales. For the convective generated cirrus clouds, a maximum lifetime of around 3--4 days was estimated over a wide range of latitudes. Such a long lifetime could be important for modeling the impact of cirrus clouds on radiation budget (climate) and heterogeneous chemical processes around the tropopause.