• 9964432222
  • Mail Us
  • Appointment
  • Locate Us
  • Chat Now
  • Courses
  • Login
  • Register
Manifest IAS
JournalsOfIndia
Manifest Learning Academy
  • Home
  • SNIPPETSfor Prelims
  • ARTICLESfor Mains
  • BROWSEBY SOURCE
  • DOWNLOADS
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • SNIPPETSfor Prelims
  • ARTICLESfor Mains
  • BROWSEBY SOURCE
  • DOWNLOADS
No Result
View All Result
JournalsOfIndia
No Result
View All Result
Home Geography

Cloud seeding

April 4, 2020
in Environment, Geography
Reading Time: 2 mins read
0
591
VIEWS
Share on WhatsAppShare on TelegramShare on Facebook
image_pdfMake PDF

Why in news?

The three-month-long cloud seeding project aimed at augmenting rainfall in North Karnataka was launched.

What is cloud seeding?

  • Cloud seeding is a way to artificially tweak rain.
  • The technology sprays particles of salts like silver iodide and chloride on clouds using a special aircraft, rockets or from dispersion devices located on the ground.
  • The most common chemicals used for cloud seeding include silver iodide, potassium iodide and dry ice (solid carbon dioxide) and Liquid propane.
  • These salt particles act as a core (cloud condensation nuclei or ice-nucleating particles) which draw water vapour within the cloud towards them.
  • The moisture latches on, condensing into water droplets leading to the formation of raindrops.
  • The goal of cloud seeding is to alter the natural development of the cloud to enhance precipitation, suppress hail, dissipate fog or reduce lightning.

History of cloud seeding:

  • Rainmaking has its roots in 1946 when American scientists Vincent Schaefer and Bernard Vonnegu at General Electric (GE) successfully seeded a cloud with dry ice and got the world’s first artificial snowfall.
  • Tata firms also took stabs at cloud seeding in the Western Ghats region in 1951 using ground-based silver iodide generators.
  • In 1952, late climatologist K. Banerji, the first Indian director-general of Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) experimented with cloud seeding with salt and silver iodide through hydrogen-filled balloons released from the ground.
  • The Rain and Cloud Physics Research (RCPR) unit of Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) in Pune carried out randomized warm cloud modification experiments through salt seeding during 1957-1966 in north India.
  • Over the next three decades, India experimented in this direction in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh.
  • Research on cloud seeding in India received a boost since 2018 with the Union Ministry of Earth Sciences investing in data collection and experiments.

Cloud seeding methods:

  • Static cloud seeding: It involves spreading a chemical like silver iodide into clouds. The silver iodide provides a crystal around which moisture can condense.
  • Dynamic cloud seeding: It aims to boost vertical air currents, which encourages more water to pass through the clouds, translating into more rain. Up to 100 times more ice crystals are used in dynamic cloud seeding than in the static method.
  • Hygroscopic cloud seeding: It disperses salts through flares or explosives in the lower portions of clouds. The salts grow in size as water joins with them.

 

image_pdfMake PDF
Tags: Prelims

Related Posts

Mahabali Frog

Mahabali Frog

January 25, 2023
Green comet appearing close to Earth after 50,000 years

Green comet appearing close to Earth after 50,000 years

January 25, 2023
Nature Risk Profile

Nature Risk Profile

January 24, 2023
Liquified Natural Gas

Liquified Natural Gas

January 23, 2023
Spot Bellied Eagle Owl

Spot Bellied Eagle Owl

January 20, 2023
A rare species of duck  Sadangman  sighted in Manipur

A rare species of duck Sadangman sighted in Manipur

January 20, 2023
Fossilised dinosaur eggs found in Narmada valley

Fossilised dinosaur eggs found in Narmada valley

January 20, 2023
Global Risk Report-2023

Global Risk Report-2023

January 19, 2023
The first evidence of the presence of solitary waves in Mars reported

The first evidence of the presence of solitary waves in Mars reported

January 18, 2023
Asian WaterBird Census 2023

Asian WaterBird Census 2023

January 18, 2023
Please login to join discussion
JournalsOfIndia

Our vision is to orient the readers to grasp the facts objectively and analyse critically. In the rush of reaching first to the readers, the websites miss the balanced opinion, which is the need of the hour. We aim to reach the readers with more crispness, preciseness and relevance. We bring the articles in UPSC way for the civil services aspirants and the Wisest Way for general readers.

Categories

  • Agriculture
  • Disaster Management
  • Economy
  • Environment
  • Ethics
  • Foreign Affairs
  • Geography
  • Governance
  • History
  • Law & Policy
  • Opinion
  • People in News
  • Places in News
  • Science & Tech
  • Security
  • Society
  • Sports
  • Uncategorized

Browse by Tag

AIR All India Radio BBC Business Line Business Standard dow Down to Earth DownToEarth DTE Economic Times ET FAO Financial Express GS-1 GS-2 GS-3 GS-4 Hindustan Times IE India & the world Indian express Indiatoday India today Kurukshetra Livelihoods portal LiveMint Mains News News Paper Newspaper PIB Prelims PRS India RSTV Science Reporter Survey The Hindu The India Express The Indian Express The Print the wire Times of India TOI TOPPERS Yojana

Newsletter

The most important UPSC news and events of the day.

Get Journals daily newsletter on your inbox.

© 2020 JournalsOfIndia - A free initiative by Manifest Team.

  • Login
  • Sign Up
  • Home
  • SNIPPETS
  • ARTICLES
  • BROWSE
  • DOWNLOADS
No Result
View All Result

© 2020 JournalsOfIndia - A free initiative by Manifest Team.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms bellow to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In