UAE: Adverse weather conditions caused by climate change, says environmental expert – News

This extreme rainfall cannot be scientifically attributed to artificial cloud seeding

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Several climate change and weather experts have confirmed that the intense and unprecedented rainfall in the UAE on April 16 is indicative of the severe and exceptional global climate shifts, due to the rise in record carbon emissions.

The experts emphasized that this extreme rainfall cannot be scientifically attributed to artificial cloud seeding.

On April 16, the UAE experienced the most substantial rainfall in its modern history across numerous regions, marking the largest volume since climate data was recorded in 1949.

The National Center of Meteorology reported the highest recorded rainfall in the Khatm al Shikla area of ​​Al Ain, at 254.8 mm. This figure represents the highest amount in 75 years and highlights the exceptional nature of these heavy rainfalls.

Such extraordinary rainfall contributes significantly to increasing the average annual rainfall in the Emirates and increasing the country’s groundwater reserves in general.

In this regard, Dr. Diana Francis, Senior Research Scientist and Head of the Environmental and Geophysical Sciences (ENGEOS) Lab at Khalifa University, said in statements to the Emirates News Agency (WAM) that the extreme weather events witnessed by the UAE mid-April 2024 are exceptional in terms of severity and widespread impact.

“The amount of rain that fell on the 16th is unprecedented and is equivalent to the amount of rain the UAE receives on average in two years or the amount of rain London receives on average in seven months.”

She explained that cloud seeding did not cause or contribute to the exceptional rainfall as the magnitude of the event is quite large and affected several countries in the region.

Furthermore, the event was predicted at least five days in advance, and those predictions did not take cloud seeding into account. Furthermore, when such severe events are forecast, cloud seeding is not performed because it is too risky for the pilots to fly into those convective clouds.

She added that cloud seeding aims to increase rainfall by helping water vapor condense in existing clouds. There is no way it can create clouds or water vapor on its own; these must be present in order to sow. During this event, all conditions were met to produce large amounts of rain without the need for sowing.

Dr. Francis predicted that extreme weather events will become more frequent and intense due to warming of the atmosphere. This warming phenomenon allows the atmosphere to retain more moisture, exacerbating the intensity of extreme weather events.