No cloud seeding conducted during latest UAE storm: NCM

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Cloud seeding did not take place when a massive storm rolled into the UAE on Tuesday, officials at the National Centre for Meteorology (NCM) have confirmed.

When asked about whether any cloud seeding took place during the heaviest rainfalls in 75 years in the UAE on Tuesday, officials at NCM told Gulf Business that there was no cloud seeding that took place during this particular storm.

NCM further stressed, in a statement provided to The National, that safety is a top priority. 

“We take the safety of our people, pilots and aircraft very seriously. NCM doesn’t conduct cloud seeding operations during extreme weather events,” NCM said in its statement.

Large storms are also not prime targets for cloud seeding, the NCM added.

“One of the basic principles of cloud seeding is that you have to target clouds in its early stage before it rains. If you have a severe thunderstorm situation then it is too late to conduct any seeding operation,” said NCM.

Long history of cloud seeding

Where it is practical and safe, the UAE has been practicing cloud seeding over many years.

The UAE performs about 1,000 hours of cloud seeding every year, in a process where small aircraft “shoot” salt substances within clouds to stimulate the formation of ice crystals or raindrops.

The country has also been building up its rain enhancement capabilities ever since they were initiated in 1990. 

“The UAE now has more than 60 networked weather stations, an integrated radar network, and five specialised aircraft for seeding operations,” says the National Centre of Meteorology on its website.

“The UAE has the first factory to produce high-quality flares in the region, which is the ‘Emirates Weather Enhancement Factory’. The materials used in the country’s cloud seeding operations are harmless, as they depend on natural salts such as potassium chloride and sodium chloride,” says the National Centre of Meteorology on its website.