Scientists in the United Arab Emirates seek to plant clouds and generate artificial rain
Mexico City /
In the face of a warmer future brought about by the climate crisis, water shortages will be frequent in different parts of the world, especially in the Middle East, scientists in the United Arab Emirates are looking for precipitation, literally artificially.
Meteorologists in the United Arab Emirates released a video last week of cars driving during heavy rain in the town of Ras al-Khaimah in the north of the country. “Artificial rain” is one of the efforts of the Arab state to increase rainfall, which usually reach 10 centimeters per year on average.
Scientists create rain by launching drones, They applied electricity to the clouds and produced torrential raindrops To prevent it from evaporating into the ground, especially in a desert country like the United Arab Emirates.
“What we’re trying to do is to make the droplets inside the clouds big enough that they would survive when they fell from the cloud,” said meteorologist and researcher Kerry Nicholl. CNN It was covered by the Washington Post. In May while his team was preparing to test drones near Dubai.
The researcher is part of the team of scientists at The University of Reading in England, whose research led to man-made storms in the Arab country.
For this purpose, four drones of about two meters in length were built that are launched from a catapult and can remain in the air for 40 minutes, In addition to injecting electric charge into the clouds, it also allows the detection of temperatureand humidity and energy in it to detect the exact moment to conduct electricity to it.
Rain fell by 50 percent in the Middle East last year, particularly in Iran, leading to lower dams and social protests over water shortages. The climate crisis has already begun to exacerbate the situation, not only in the region, but globally in examples such as the record temperatures recorded in Canada.
A growing population and increasing demand for water are eventually causing the water level in the United Arab Emirates to sink, according to scientists. They seek to enhance rainfall to avoid eventual severe drought.
The country is investing in technology to desalinate water from the sea and convert it to fresh water. Most of the country’s water comes from this system and the authorities are seeking to reduce this demand in the coming years.
Destroyed
“Award-winning zombie scholar. Music practitioner. Food expert. Troublemaker.”