Cloud seeding, global warming: What caused widespread flooding and brought Dubai to a grinding halt

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Tuesday experienced torrential rains leading to widespread flooding, disruptions at Dubai airport, school closures, and bringing daily life to a grinding halt.

The state-run WAM news agency called the rain “a historic weather event” that surpassed “anything documented since the start of data collection in 1949.” That’s before the discovery of crude oil in this energy-rich nation then part of a British protectorate known as the Trucial States.

Shoppers shocked as ceilings leak and water floods major shopping centres

• These heavy rains in Dubai led to unexpected flooding in several popular malls, creating dramatic scenes of water gushing through ceilings and inundating shopping areas. The unusual weather has disrupted regular operations and posed challenges for both shoppers and store owners.
• In various social media posts, visitors captured footage of the flooding inside some of the city’s major malls. One notable video from the Mall of the Emirates shows water pouring down from the ceiling, with parts of the infrastructure breaking away. This has forced some stores to shut down temporarily to prevent further damage.
• Deira City Centre also experienced similar issues, with videos showing water dripping across multiple areas of the mall. The leaks made escalators unusable, pushing visitors to use stairs that were also affected by the leaking water, complicating their exit, a Khaleej Times report said.

What cause such unprecedented rains in UAE? Is cloud seeding to blame?

• According to a Bloomberg report, the recent heavy rains and subsequent flooding in Dubai and other parts of the UAE were linked to active cloud seeding operations. The National Center of Meteorology (NCM) in the UAE confirmed that seeding planes flew seven missions over two days, targeting suitable clouds to maximize rainfall.
• The UAE began its cloud seeding operations in 2002, focusing on convective cloud formations, particularly during periods when these clouds are most likely to yield additional rainfall. According to Ahmed Habib, a specialist meteorologist, planes were dispatched from Al Ain airport to seed clouds that appeared promising in terms of potential rain enhancement, the Bloomberg report said.
• This intense activity coincided with a period of already favorable weather conditions for rain, which significantly amplified the effects of the seeding, leading to the heaviest rainfall ever recorded in the nation since records began in 1949.

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What is cloud seeding?

• Cloud seeding is a weather modification technique used to increase precipitation. This method involves dispersing substances into the air that serve as cloud condensation or ice nuclei. The most common chemicals used include silver iodide, potassium iodide, and sodium chloride (table salt). In the UAE, cloud seeding operations typically use natural salts like potassium chloride. These particles encourage the accumulation of moisture in clouds, which then precipitates as rain.

Why does the UAE use cloud seeding?

• The UAE, a desert country, faces significant water security challenges. Cloud seeding is part of their strategy to increase water reserves through enhanced rainfall.

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Can cloud seeding cause flooding?

• While cloud seeding itself is designed to increase rainfall, the extent and impact of rain, especially flooding, depend on several factors including the amount of seeding material used, atmospheric conditions, and the preparedness of the ground infrastructure to handle excessive water.

Was the recent flooding solely caused by cloud seeding? Was it global warming?

• Friederike Otto, a leader in the field of assessing the role of climate change on specific extreme weather events, said it was likely that global warming played a part.
• “It is highly likely that the deadly and destructive rain in Oman and Dubai was made heavier by human-caused climate change,” said Otto, of the Grantham Institute for Climate Change at Imperial College London.
• But flooding was due to a combination of heavy cloud seeding and existing meteorological conditions that were conducive to rain. The lack of adequate drainage systems in many areas also exacerbated the flooding.

(With inputs from agencies)

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