Why Dubai chooses cloud seeding??

Dubai faces significant water scarcity due to its arid climate and limited freshwater resources. The UAE, located in one of the hottest and driest regions on Earth, has been leading the effort to seed clouds and increase precipitation.

Cloud seeding offers a potential solution to augment precipitation and increase water supply for agriculture, industry, and domestic use. The practice is a type of weather modification process whereby small planes fly through clouds burning salt flares which can increase precipitation to help make it rain.

The salt particles serve as nuclei around which water droplets condense, eventually growing heavy enough to fall as precipitation in the form of rain. The United Arab Emirates resorted to cloud seeding technique in 2002 in a bid to address water security issues.

By exploring cloud seeding as a water management strategy, Dubai can diversify its water sources beyond traditional methods such as de-salination and groundwater extraction. This diversification enhances water security and resilience to climate variability. Despite the potential benefits of cloud seeding, concerns have been raised about its environmental impact and the safety of the seeding agents used.

The heavy rainfall prompted the UAE government to issue warnings urging employees to work from home and only leave “in cases of extreme necessity." All federal employees have been asked to work remotely until Wednesday.

A recent study suggested that annual rainfall could increase by up to about 30% across much of the UAE by the end of the century as the world continues to warm. Following the downpour, several reports quoted meteorologists at the National Centre for Meteorology, the UAE's meteorology agency, as saying they flew six or seven cloud seeding flights before the rain.

The heavy showers that disrupted life in Dubai city were associated with a larger storm system traversing the Arabian Peninsula and moving across the Gulf of Oman Overall, cloud seeding aligns with Dubai's objectives of addressing water scarcity, promoting sustainable water management practices, and enhancing resilience to climate change, making it a viable option for the emirate.

Dr. Deepak Kumar Sahu, President & CEO, VARINDIA