The UAE is located in a dust hotspot, contributing to the arid climate. There is little to no rainfall due to frontal systems from the west and northwest, which produce only a few inches of rain per year. What steps did Dubai take to address this issue?
Due to the scarcity of natural rain, Dubai uses cloud seeding to create artificial rain on a regular basis. People are warned about the impending rains a day in advance
What is Cloud Seeding?
Clouds are formed when water vapor in the atmosphere cools and condenses around a particle of dust or salt, forming tiny water droplets or ice crystals. Raindrops or snowflakes cannot develop without these particles, known as condensation nuclei, and precipitation will not occur.
Cloud seeding is a weather-modification technique that artificially adds condensation nuclei to the sky, giving a base for snowflakes or raindrops to form, improving a cloud’s potential to generate rain or snow. Precipitation falls from the clouds back to the Earth’s surface when cloud seeding occurs. (Source: Dri )
Dubai’s Government has Created Man-made Rainstorms
The government has chosen to take control of the hot heat in Dubai, which often exceeds 115 degrees Fahrenheit.
In the United Arab Emirates, scientists are making it rain – artificially – by manipulating the weather with electrical charges from drones and driving rainfall throughout the arid country. Meteorological officials in Ras al Khaimah and other parts of the UAE released video footage of a rainstorm this week.
The new cloud seeding technology has the potential to help ease droughts all around the world while posing fewer environmental concerns than previous technologies that used salt flares.
The United Arab Emirates receives approximately 4 inches of rain per year. The government hopes that zapping clouds to generate rain regularly will help mitigate some of the country’s yearly heat waves.
According to research from the University of Reading in the U.K., scientists created the storms using drones, which hit clouds with electricity, creating large raindrops. The larger raindrops are essential in the hot country, where smaller droplets often evaporate before hitting the ground.
During a visit to the University of Reading in May, when he was given examples of the new technology, Mansoor Abulhoul, the UAE’s ambassador to the UK said
It’s moving to think that the rainfall technology I saw today, which is still being developed, may someday support countries in water-scarce environments like the UAE
Mansoor Abulhoul
Vice-chancellor Robert Van de Noort also made a statement during the visit.
Of course, our ability to manipulate weather is puny compared to the forces of nature,” We are mindful that we as a University have a big role to play, by working with global partners to understand and help prevent the worst effects of climate change.
Robert Van de Noort
The university received $1.5 million in funding in 2017 for “Rain Enhancement Science,” commonly known as man-made rainstorms, by academics at the university.
(Source: CBS News )