The Arab Emirates surprised the world by spending nearly 500 billion VND to 'sow clouds in the sky'

Faced with a future of severe water shortages, the United Arab Emirates has launched a project to increase regional rainfall.

Rising global temperatures are putting pressure on parts of the Middle East. This place is extremely vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.

These countries are currently facing a big problem: How to solve the problem of water shortage?

The UAE practices cloud seeding every year to enhance rainfall. (Illustration).

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has an average rainfall of less than 200 mm per year, in sharp contrast to London's average of 1,051 mm and Singapore's 3,012 mm.

In the UAE, temperatures can reach 50 degrees Celsius in the summer and 80% of the country's landscape is covered in desert terrain. Extreme heat could worsen the water scarcity problem and limit agricultural productivity in the country.

The United Nations predicts that by 2025, 1.8 billion people worldwide will face absolute water scarcity. The Middle East is one of the most water-stressed regions, with approximately 83% of the region's population at risk of experiencing high levels of water shortage.

Faced with core regional challenges, Gulf countries have launched a project to address this issue.

Cloud sowing project

In the 1990s, the UAE introduced a rain enhancement method called cloud seeding. Cloud seeding is the process of increasing the amount of precipitation produced by clouds in the sky, to improve water shortages in arid areas.

In the early 2000s, UAE Vice President Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan allocated up to 20 million USD (about 494 billion VND) for cloud seeding research. The UAE cooperates with the US National Center for Atmospheric Research in Colorado and NASA to implement this program.

The government has established a task force called the National Center of Meteorology (NCM) in Abu Dhabi, which carries out more than 1,000 hours of cloud seeding each year to enhance rainfall.

NCM has a network of radars and more than 60 weather stations to manage cloud seeding operations and closely monitor atmospheric conditions.

This technology is based on science. (Photo: Getty Images).

How to sow clouds

Weather forecasters at the center can observe rainfall in clouds and determine which clouds are suitable for seeding with more water, with the aim of increasing rainfall rates.

After detecting the correct cloud, they will instruct pilots to fly specialized aircraft equipped with artificial cloud seeding devices on the wings. They contain desiccants, usually hygroscopic salts , which are capable of absorbing water vapor from the air and creating water droplets. When burned, hygroscopic flares create fine salt particles that can absorb water vapor and grow into raindrops. When the clouds are too heavy, rain will form.

During a visit to NCM, Director General Abdulla Al Mandous said the technology is based on science . And he added that the Abu Dhabi program does not use silver iodide. The material has been criticized for its potential harmful effects on the environment and humans.

NCM says it does not use any toxic chemicals in its operations. 'Our specialized aircraft only use natural salt and do not use toxic chemicals.'

Director Al Mandous said the center has started producing its own cloud seeding agent called nanomaterials , a fine salt coated with titanium oxide , which is more effective than what they were using. He said it will be three times more effective than desiccant flares. This material is currently being tested in many areas in the UAE and the US.