Artificial rain is what will help China humidify an area in three Spain. At any rate, this is China's latest weather manipulation project. The system will include solid fuel burners, drones, aircraft, artillery and a network of meteorological probes that will explore the vast expanses of the Indian Ocean. The goal is to create a distributed system capable of combating climate change and increasing rainfall in the area by ten billion cubic meters, or about 7% of China's annual water consumption.
Of course, the project - and artificial rain technology in general - has its critics and opponents. Some cite the untested nature of the technology, others fear that the project will increase international friction in an unstable region.
Zoom and satellites
China's new project involves the deployment of thousands of chambers that burn solid fuels on the Tibetan plateau. When burned, the chambers will produce silver iodide. Iodide acts as a condensate for water molecules in the air. The more water molecules gather around iodide molecules, the heavier they become and fall to the ground like snow or rain. This process is known as cloud seeding.
Each year, humid monsoon winds from the Indian Ocean sweep northward across the Himalayan mountains. Real-time data on monsoon activity collected from 30 weather satellites will ensure that fuel combustion coincides with optimal conditions for binding debris water mists with iodide released during combustion, thus increasing rain and snowfall. Combustion networks will be assisted by drones, cloud seeding, aircraft and even artillery to maximize its effect.
The SCMP, citing an unnamed scientist working on the project, reports that 500 combustion chambers have already been built, with initial results very promising. A single combustion chamber costs about $ 8,000. Upon completion, "tens of thousands of cameras" will be located on the Tibetan plateau. The goal is to increase rainfall over an area of approximately 1.6 million square kilometers. It is the largest artificial rain project in the world.
Climate change is the main reason China is taking on this project. Climate models predict that the area will experience severe droughts and temperature rises, which will reduce regional precipitation, according to SCMP. This poses significant risks to China and its neighbors, as the Tibetan plateau is an important source of water in the region.
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Climate under control
China has been developing technological ways to manipulate the weather, as well as looking for ways to collect or distribute fresh water, for many years. In 2016, the Heavenly River project was proposed. Its goal is to increase the water supply to the northern arid regions of China by evaporating water and using northern air currents to transport the fumes north.
Closer to the ground, manipulating the weather could be a way to combat the high levels of pollution found in many of China's major cities. The project involves anchoring large sprinkler systems on the outer sides of skyscrapers. By spraying water on the air, one could (probably) bind toxins and gases with the water, thereby reducing the amount of toxic smog.
China is by no means the only country developing projects to manage weather. In 2016, 56 countries had such programs, up from 42 in 2011.
The idea of manipulating the weather has been around for a long time and was even used during the Vietnam War. Operation Popeye, for example, aimed to increase rainfall during the monsoon season, making the terrain muddy and difficult for enemy combatants. The unofficial slogan of the Air Force pilots who carried out the mission was "do dirt, not war."
Take water and make it rain
The final approval of the project by the Chinese authorities has not yet been made, but has already caused concern in other regions of China, as well as in neighboring countries. Manipulating the weather to get more rainfall over the Tibetan plains can lead to less rainfall elsewhere. Tibet is often called the water tower of Asia, which feeds the Brahmaputra, Mekong, Yangtze and Yellow rivers. Could an increase in rainfall in a particular geographic region lead to a decrease in rainfall elsewhere? This question still remains unanswered, and it is not clear what to do with it.
Critics also point to a far from proven theory of weather manipulation.
Ma Weiqiang, a scientist at the Tibetan Plateau Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, called the experiment "unprecedented," but doubts the combustion chambers will have any effect on the weather. In particular, he is skeptical about the amount of rainfall they can produce. The climate system is huge. Any attempts by people to intervene may look dull.
Others are optimistic about the potential of the project.
“Even a 10 percent increase in rainfall or snow can justify the cost,” says Bart Geerts, professor of atmospheric sciences at the University of Wyoming.
Ilya Khel
