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Cloud Seeding- Should it be used under extreme drought conditions in the US?

  • Web Diva
    Leader
    September 17, 2022 3:24 PM CDT

    Most of you have probably heard the term cloud seeding. I've been aware of it and have wondered about it's use. Cloud seeding has been around since 1940 and it is done by using silver iodide rods that are shot into existing clouds. China has one of the biggest cloud seeding programs in the world. China is cloud seeding to replenish its shrinking Yangtze River due to drought.

    China is seeding clouds to replenish its shrinking Yangtze River
    The Yangtze had dried up in parts as swaths of China battle drought and the nation's worst heat waves in more than 60 years.
     
    After reading this article, I had wondered if the US was using this technology and if not, why not? This past summer was one of the hottest summers on record. Some areas of the US were inundated with extreme harsh weather and rain, while others, particularly in the south, went without rain for nearly seventy days and the drought conditions from this lack of rain are severe.
     
    Should cloud seeding be used under extreme drought conditions in the US? What is the history of cloud seeding use in the US?