Nine cloud-seeding flights undertaken since Friday as rain falls steadily over the UAE
Nine cloud-seeding missions have been undertaken over the UAE’s skies since Friday as the bout of unsettled weather continues.
The missions were flown throughout the country, from Friday morning to 10am yesterday, the National Centre of Meteorology told The National.
Rain had been falling for the past few days, with 16.6 millimetres at a weather station in Al Ain on Friday and Saturday. Recorded at Damtha, it was the maximum fall over the country during this time.
The rain has continued since then and videos posted to the weather bureau’s social media channels yesterday showed downfalls in many parts of the country, including Dubai and Sharjah. It coincides with a period of unsettled weather as the country goes though seasonal change.
“We expect some rain [today] and the sea is going to be moderate to rough, especially with the cloud activity over the Arabian Gulf,” a forecaster said yesterday.
The rain is expected to persist until midweek when the weather is expected to change. Humidity is set to increase, along with a risk of mist and fog.
The bureau’s cloud-seeding missions run throughout the year. During the summer rain can fall, especially in eastern areas because of the monsoon clouds that drift from India. Last year the bureau conducted 242 missions, while 177 were undertaken in 2016. Clouds suitable for seeding are called convective, also known as cumilform, which have an updraft in the middle.
When these can be seen on radar, pilots are sent to the location and fire salt flares into the updraft. The particles attract tiny droplets of water and encourage condensation.
The droplets then collide with others, become larger and eventually fall to the ground as rain.