“Cloud seeding” and its controversial relationship to heavy rainfall

“Cloud seeding”

and its controversial relationship to heavy rainfall

Many countries around the world use "cloud pollination" technology to stimulate

rainfall, such as the United States, France and Australia, as well as the UAE

which has seen significant rainfall over the past days.

Some may link the controversial technique with flash floods

but experts say there is virtually no connection between the two events.

However :

• the "clouds pollination" technique, developed more than 80 years ago

• is not without potential risks and, according to experts

• may lead to "catastrophic effects".

What is "clouds pollination"?

General Electric researchers discovered a strange effect when conducting

experiments on how clouds form in the lab. They found that when water vapour

became too cold, between -10 ° C and -5 ° C

it would not necessarily constitute snow crystals.

But :

• when researchers added a soft powder of silver iodide

• (a chemical used in photography)

• they were immediately amazed by the freezing of water.

The reason is that water vapor cannot form crystals on its own

but needs something to form a "nucleus" to thicken around.

In natural clouds :

this "cloud intensification nucleus" may be provided by bacteria or small dust

particles, but researchers have now found a way to synthetically form them.

The "clouds pollination"

technique works through its application to natural clouds, where "silver iodide"

or food salt is injected into clouds, causing ice crystals to form rapidly

which eventually fall as snow or rain depending on the weather condition.

"Clouds are"

pollinated "either by releasing chemicals from the ground

injecting them directly from aircraft, or launching them into 

louds using missiles," said Johan Jack, senior meteorologist at KISTERS.

Where is the :

"pollination of clouds" technique used?

• This technology has been used in some 50 different countries

• including the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which has been running

• a sophisticated clouds vaccination programme since the 1990s, where

approximately 1000 hours of 

"clouds pollination" missions are carried out annually.

The United States has a very long history of "clouds pollination" missions

beginning in 1947 with Operation Cyrus, where the United States

military dumped about 90 kg of dry ice in a hurricane off the coast of Florida.

Although there is no evidence that the mission had any impact, some threatened to

file lawsuits against the state after the hurricane unexpectedly changed course.

In 2018 :

the States of Wyoming, Utah and Colorado entered into

a cost-sharing agreement to finance "drawdown pollination" tasks.

In Australia :

trials of "clouds pollination" began in 1947 and have continued to this day.

China is the most productive supporter of weather modification technology.

For many years, the Weather Adjustment Office has used the "clouds pollination"

technique to end droughts, combat forest fires

and avoid precipitation during military demonstrations.

This technique is used not only to increase rainfall, as it is used in countries

such as Spain, France and Germany primarily to prevent hail.

Why is "pollination of clouds" controversial?

Many may not agree with the application of the "pollination of clouds"

technique, due to concern over flash floods.

But Dr. :

Frederick Otto :

a leading weather expert from Imperial College London

said: 

• Cloud pollination cannot produce heavy amounts of rain.

• the technique modifies an existing cloud, and a small accumulative

• cloud cannot be converted into a thunderstorm only by pollinating clouds ".

Otto added that the greatest concern was that "clouds pollination" was used as an

alternative to effective action on climate change

which was the real cause of increased rainfall.

She continued:

"The pollination of clouds is another clear strategy to avoid demands to stop

burning fossil fuels. If humans continue to burn oil, gas and coal

climate change and heavy rainfall will continue ".