Since the beginning of civilization, people have tried to establish their control over nature. The list of people's success on that path is also quite long. Humans have changed the course of rivers with dams, cut canals and combined oceans with seas, shown thumbs to gravity and built shelters in space! Sometimes the result of nature's rule has been blessing, sometimes it has brought disaster. However, with the speed at which science and technology are advancing, there is no doubt that human control over the basic structures of nature will increase day by day. Let's get acquainted with such a revolutionary technology today.
Freshwater, the only natural source of which is rainfall, is one of the main ingredients for the survival of humans and countless animals. But no one has control over this rain. It is not always expected that the rain will fall on the day-date-time according to the needs of the animals. What if the control of rain was in the hands of people? Who needs a little rain when needed! As far-fetched as it sounds, humans have long established some control over rain. The method of artificial precipitation is called cloud seeding.
How Cloud Seeding Works
The method of cloud seeding is not very complicated. Precipitation is caused by spraying chemicals on unusable rain clouds in the sky, also known as artificial precipitation. Actually, the principle of rain is the condensation of clouds, which occurs naturally.
Now if the clouds in this troposphere can be artificially condensed ahead of time, then rain will start immediately. This is essentially what 'cloud seeding' does. Dry ice (condensed carbon dioxide), silver iodide, potassium iodide, liquid propane gas, or even potassium chloride (salt) sprayed on the clouds by airplanes, rockets, or missiles helps the clouds to condense more quickly, resulting in precipitation. Artificial snow is produced along with rain using the same technology. Currently, silver iodide is the most effective and popular solution for cloud seeding
How it started
American chemist Vincent Schaeffer is said to be the father of 'cloud seeding'. Schaefer made the first successful practical application of artificial precipitation in July 1946 at the United States General Electric laboratory. Later, another Nobel-winning American scientist, Irving Langmoore, joined Schaefer. On November 13 of the same year, the two scientists were able to produce artificial precipitation using the first cloud seeding technology in human history in the open environment of the Berkshire hills. Interestingly, Schaeffer had no formal degree in chemistry. The self-taught scientist, who left behind 14 patents before his death, never wore a high school uniform.
Controversy vs. successful implementation
There is considerable debate in scientific circles about how effective cloud seeding is, or whether the technology can actually increase annual rainfall. Some scientists believe that artificial rainfall produced in this way is of little use in the long run. Besides, excessive cloud seeding can disrupt the natural balance of the environment. The chemicals used in it can also cause damage to health. However, cloud seeding is proven effective in short-term or immediate needs.
An example is the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Weather forecasts ahead of the start of the Summer Olympics called for heavy rain in Beijing on the opening day of the Games. 100 million dollar opening ceremony will withstand the rain! Then China did an incredible thing. A total of 1,104 chemical-laden rockets were fired in the days leading up to the Games into the clouds flying from the sea towards Beijing. The result? Before the clouds entered the skies over Beijing, the rain dissipated, and the opening ceremony of the Summer Olympics went off without a hitch at the Bird's Nest Stadium on August 8, 2008 under a sparkling sky. When it comes to China, let's say that China produces most of the artificial rainfall in the world today.
Weapons when cloud seeding technology!
It sounds surprising but this is true! The United States used cloud seeding technology as a weapon in an unprecedented way in the Vietnam War in 1967. In this operation, infamously known as 'Operation Popeye', the Americans used cloud seeding to cause large amounts of artificial rain on the Ho Chi Minh Trail connecting the northern and southern regions of Vietnam. Mainly this resulted in flooding and landslides which hampered the communication system of the Vietnamese forces. Transport of food and weapons between the northern and southern parts became difficult.
To protect from natural calamities
As artificial rainfall has been used as a weapon of war, it has also been used frequently to save human lives, the most recent example being Indonesia. In January 2020, around 43 people lost their lives in 3 days due to heavy rains and landslides in Jakarta, Indonesia. The weather forecast predicted heavy rains to continue for at least another two weeks. Cloud seeding is one of the measures taken quickly by the Indonesian government to reduce the potential damage. Clouds formed in Jakarta Bay were sprayed with sodium chloride to prevent them from entering the city. Before entering the city, as some rain fell in the adjacent river, the clouds gradually weakened, saving lives and property.
Multiple uses
Currently many countries are using cloud seeding technology in their rainfed crop production. Thailand is ahead of everyone in the race to use cloud seeding technology in agriculture. The Thai government has been running an official artificial rainfall scheme since 1955, mainly to protect the country's rain-fed crops.
United Arab Emirates is a successful example of how artificial rainfall can be a boon in arid and desert regions. In this riverless country surrounded by desert and sea, it rains on average only 10 days every year, the total amount of which is only 120 millimeters. Not only that, ninety percent of the country's groundwater is saline. Since the beginning of this century, the government has undertaken major initiatives to increase rainfall, including large-scale research to increase rainfall, development of cloud seeding technology, and construction of artificial lakes and dams to store rainwater. A team from the Emirates National Meteorological Center monitors clouds around the clock, and starts cloud seeding operations when it finds a cloud that could produce rain.
In 2017 alone, they completed as many as 242 successful cloud seeding operations that helped increase rainfall by 15-30 percent. Emirates is a role model not only in artificial rainfall but also in desalination of sea salt water. 99 percent of the water used in the daily work of the country is purified sea water!
What is the future of artificial precipitation?
Technology does not stand still. As it develops day by day, all previous ideas are broken by the invention of a completely new technology. Cloud seeding is still quite expensive. Research is underway on the use of laser beams instead of aircraft or rockets, which could make artificial precipitation technology simpler and cheaper.
Now let's look a little further ahead. Maybe soon we will be able to invent technology that will not only be able to filter the clouds in the sky and make it rain, but will also be able to evaporate water from the sea at will and create clouds. Think about it, some day in the future maybe, to irrigate a few hectares of paddy land in Dinajpur, clouds are made from the Bay of Bengal and blown up and rained on a specific day, at a specific place, with a specific amount of rain! Sounds surreal? There is no such thing as superstition to people, so there is no obstacle to hope!
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