Dubai is making its own fake rain to beat 122°F heat • Hacker News Board

Re: Dubai is making its own fake rain to beat 122°F heat

#21

Post by mrweasel » Wed, Jul 21, 2021, 1:41 PM UTC

truculent wrote: post #7

Are there any known side-effects of inducing rain in an unusual place like this? The weather is a complex system, so I hesitate to speculate too much, but would it reduce rainfall elsewhere? With geopolitical tensions rising over rights to the Nile, I wonder if rainfall patterns could follow a similar trend.

> would it reduce rainfall elsewhere?

It will. I think it was The Economist, but it might have been some other magazine, who had an article recently, regarding Chinas usage of cloud seeding.

You're potentially "stealing" rain from other countries or regions. If it was just going into the ocean, then maybe it's fine, but if you're stealing it from a neighbouring country.

Re: Dubai is making its own fake rain to beat 122°F heat

#22

Post by dole » Wed, Jul 21, 2021, 1:45 PM UTC

aeroman wrote: post #15

cataflam wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The enhanced rain is created using drone technology that unleashes electrical charges into clouds (..) > Applying electrical shocks to clouds is preferred as it doesn’t require the use of chemicals. So, a bit different than cloud seeding

The idea is pretty similar, in that the aim to to create cloud droplets large enough that precipitation forms in those clouds (hygroscopic cloud seeding). This is a little different from glaciogenic cloud seeding, where you aim to generate ice in a supercooled cloud (which has historically has been more common). Glaciogenic seeding typically uses something like silver iodide (to nucleate ice crystals). For the clouds…

Curious how saline that rain would end up being, detrimental to plant life, considerable corrosion for metals/cars/etc.

Re: Dubai is making its own fake rain to beat 122°F heat

#23

Post by Shadonototro » Wed, Jul 21, 2021, 1:45 PM UTC

that means other region won't have rain

this should be illegal

Re: Dubai is making its own fake rain to beat 122°F heat

#24

Post by Thev00d00 » Wed, Jul 21, 2021, 1:53 PM UTC

Shadonototro wrote: post #23

that means other region won't have rain this should be illegal

Perhaps the scope of "Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses" should be expanded, or similar legislation

Re: Dubai is making its own fake rain to beat 122°F heat

#25

Post by rjmunro » Wed, Jul 21, 2021, 1:55 PM UTC

dr1s wrote: post #5

afavour wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Only thing I can think of is perhaps that could reduce rainfall in neighboring areas which would have received the rain. …which seems significant, no? If you fast forward to a water deprived future (uh, present?) and give nation states the ability to take water that would have fallen on neighbouring countries and take it for themselves… I don’t see how that ends well. Don’t get me wrong, the technology is fascinati…

Clouds can also just evaporate if the temperature is hot enough, like in a desert. Regardless I think it's better to use this kind of method for cloud-seeding then the pumping chemicals into the air, which seems to be the common method.

If a cloud "evaporates", the water is still in the air and will condense into clouds and rain at some point somewhere else. It can't just disappear.

Re: Dubai is making its own fake rain to beat 122°F heat

#26

Post by voisin » Wed, Jul 21, 2021, 2:03 PM UTC

mensetmanusman wrote: post #18

Evaporative cooling for the win. I wish (any) parks had this built in (ignoring splash/water parks), because it would be easier justifying brining kids out in this type of heat (especially for parks with no shade due to poor design). It would also bring more community together to have outdoor areas that are dramatically cooler than the surroundings.

I have no idea why shade isn’t a primary design concern for every park. It is almost always left to “there’s a tiny tree over there that will produce shade in 25 years”. It is shocking.

Re: Dubai is making its own fake rain to beat 122°F heat

#27

Post by [deleted] » Wed, Jul 21, 2021, 2:05 PM UTC

mensetmanusman wrote: post #18

Evaporative cooling for the win. I wish (any) parks had this built in (ignoring splash/water parks), because it would be easier justifying brining kids out in this type of heat (especially for parks with no shade due to poor design). It would also bring more community together to have outdoor areas that are dramatically cooler than the surroundings.

[deleted]

Re: Dubai is making its own fake rain to beat 122°F heat

#28

Post by Mvhsz » Wed, Jul 21, 2021, 2:06 PM UTC

dole wrote: post #22

aeroman wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The idea is pretty similar, in that the aim to to create cloud droplets large enough that precipitation forms in those clouds (hygroscopic cloud seeding). This is a little different from glaciogenic cloud seeding, where you aim to generate ice in a supercooled cloud (which has historically has been more common). Glaciogenic seeding typically uses something like silver iodide (to nucleate ice crystals). For the clouds…

Curious how saline that rain would end up being, detrimental to plant life, considerable corrosion for metals/cars/etc.

Just guessing but I can't imagine they use as much salt as northern cities put on the road when it snows (dump trucks worth of salt). There's information for that at my local extension office [1]. The TL;DR is that plants don't love it, but they tolerate it. Grasses are especially tolerant.

[1] https://plant-pest-advisory.rutgers.edu/impact-of-road-salt-...

Re: Dubai is making its own fake rain to beat 122°F heat

#29

Post by city41 » Wed, Jul 21, 2021, 2:09 PM UTC

voisin wrote: post #26

mensetmanusman wrote: post #18

Evaporative cooling for the win. I wish (any) parks had this built in (ignoring splash/water parks), because it would be easier justifying brining kids out in this type of heat (especially for parks with no shade due to poor design). It would also bring more community together to have outdoor areas that are dramatically cooler than the surroundings.

I have no idea why shade isn’t a primary design concern for every park. It is almost always left to “there’s a tiny tree over there that will produce shade in 25 years”. It is shocking.

Heck, my neighborhood is 21 years old and the trees are still too small to provide any meaningful shade.

Re: Dubai is making its own fake rain to beat 122°F heat

#30

Post by thebean11 » Wed, Jul 21, 2021, 2:10 PM UTC

_Understated_ wrote: post #6

The other comments here talk about hoarding potential for rain in the future and depriving others of it but what about weaponising it? You could potentially annihilate your enemy by generating masses of rainfall and destroying their infrastructure could you not? It wouldn't be as targetted as a missile strike but you could easily say "it wasn't me!"...

If you have the ability to freely fly a bunch of drones in enemy territory there’s a lot of stuff you can do.