Floods in Dubai?!
Recently, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) faced its most intense rainfall ever. This caused floods in Dubai, causing property and vehicle damage, stopping air travel, etc.
This kind of weather event is rare in Dubai, as the area doesn’t receive much rain due to its dry climate. Some are saying the intense rain was caused due to cloud seeding.
Cloud seeding! What’s that?
Cloud seeding is the method used to make clouds release more rain by adding special chemicals like silver iodide to them.
This is done by releasing chemicals into the clouds using aeroplanes. The chemical substances help form raindrops, which then cause rainfall.
Cloud seeding has helped create artificial rainfall in places including China and the UAE.
Although some believe cloud seeding caused heavy rain, many experts disagree and say it was not the reason.
Then what’s the real reason?
Climate experts think the UAE's high rainfall was likely caused by a regular weather pattern made worse by climate change.
They also said that while cloud seeding can cause rainfall, it doesn’t cause heavy rainfall or flooding.
As the Earth gets warmer due to climate change, more water evaporates from oceans and lakes. This increases the atmosphere's moisture or water vapour levels, which can cause more storms and heavy rain.
A study suggests that as temperature rises, some areas of the UAE might receive more rain in the future.
