And could cloud seeding be involved..?

If you woke up to grey skies and a little fizzle of drizzle this morning – you’re not alone. The country’s weather charts show a wide spread of rain, with mild soaking recorded across the UAE. But how long will it last?

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cloud-seeding

The National Centre of Meteorology’s current five-day forecast warns of rough seas and light-to-moderate rain in intervals across coastal and Northern areas.

For those feeling some consternation about the precipitation, fret not – rain is expected to fall in moderation and the inundation across the nation is predicted to approach a gradual cessation by Friday.

What’s causing the current rainfall? Could cloud seeding be involved?

Whenever there is rain in the UAE, people tend to set themselves up in one of three camps: It was cloud seeding; it definitely wasn’t cloud seeding; Or maybe they should take advantage of this weather and do some cloud seeding.

The prevailing meteorological conditions this week are an extension of a surface low-pressure coming in from the West, meeting a system of weak low-pressure in the upper air. And that is a route to seasonal rainfall. Low pressure systems experience their lowest pressure at their centre which causes a sort of drawing in of the wind, and that causes the air to rise. With the rising air, water vapor condenses, making clouds and, given the right conditions, rain.

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 do 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: Getty