Aircraft-based experiments to study cloud seeding next yr:Govt

The Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) will conduct aircraft-based observations next year to understand cloud seeding, the Rajya Sabha was informed.
Cloud seeding has the potential to stimulate precipitation and form rain when clouds are in the development stage with sufficient amount of moisture.
In a written reply, Union Minister of State in Ministry of Earth Sciences Y S Chowdary said the IITM has implemented Cloud Aerosal Interaction and Precipitation Enhancement Experiment (CAPIEEX) to understand aerosal cloud interaction.
"On the basis of the observation, a cloud seeding experiment was conducted over the rain shadow region of Indian peninsula to propose protocols for conducting cloud seeding," he said, noting that past efforts could not give adequate samples for statistically significant results.

"It is proposed to conduct more aircraft-based observations in 2018-19 monsoon season," Chowdary added.
The process involves using either silver iodide or other hygroscopic particles for being dispensed on the top or at the cloud base.
The particles thus form cloud condensation nuclei and grow by condensation of water on a cloud droplet.
Ultimately, they grow in size, by collecting more droplets to form rain drops of a few millimetre size that fall out as precipitation.