April showers could be inbound…

Cancel the hair appointment, hold tight on the deluxe car wash, and put a pin in the iftar picnic plans – because it looks like parts of the country are headed for another (mild) soaking.

That’s according to the National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) whose five-day forecast includes the “probability of light rainfall” over the next 24 hours in “southward” areas.

In fact, there’s been thick fog and rain falling this morning in parts of Abu Dhabi…

The rest of the week

The NCM bulletin for the rest of the week includes other warnings of potential precipitation. On Wednesday there’s “a chance of light rainfall over scattered areas”; on Thursday it’s likely to be “partly cloudy in general” with times a chance of light rainfall over scattered areas” during the daytime; and on Friday, there’s a probability of waking up to fog and mist in coastal areas.

And what about cloud seeding?

Has cloud seeding got anything to do with this current weather we’re experiencing? Possibly. We’re currently in the annual sweet spot for high rainfall, so it’s entirely possible all of it can be ascribed to natural climatic patterns.

However we know that the UAE runs cloud seeding operations to enhance predicted rainfall. When we spoke to Mr. Omar Alyazeedi, deputy director of the National Center of Meteorology (NCM), he told What’s On that the UAE carries out approximately 300 cloud seeding missions annually”.

And if you’ve ever wondered what sorts of cloud are the best for seeding? Alyazeedi explains “while not all types of clouds respond equally to cloud seeding, cumuliform clouds such as cumulus clouds with a heaped shape and strong updraft at their bases are generally considered the most responsive to cloud seeding efforts.”

Images: Unsplash