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Cloud seeding brings rain, cold winds to UAE

Four planes on standby to seed overcast skies to improve chances of rain.

Chances of rain will be little in the next couple of days but expect more rain to come throughout the month as the National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) is continually conducting cloud seeding in various parts of the country, a senior official said on Tuesday.
Speaking over the phone with Khaleej Times, Omar Al Yazeedi, NCM director of research and development, said that successful cloud-seeding missions over the last two days brought rains since Monday night until Tuesday morning in some parts of Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah.
"Every day, from morning till night, we are always on the look out for 'seedable clouds," Al Yazeedi said. "The UAE is one of the first countries that is using cloud-seeding technology."
"Cloud-seeding missions are carried out when there are cloud formations and we have sophisticated radars to spot them. We have four planes readily available to fire special salt flares to spread sodium chloride whenever there is an overcast sky to enhance the formation and release of cloud moisture into raindrops," he explained.
Mercury is also going down. According to the NCM, the lowest temperature on Tuesday was 3.8°C on Jebal Jais at 3.45am. The minimum temperatures expected until Thursday will be between 11°C to 17°C in coastal areas, 7°C -15°C in internal areas, and 5°C -11°C in mountain areas. 
"The temperature is expected to drop over the next couple of days. We encourage everyone to take advantage of the fine weather and enjoy the rain. But, of course, safety is a priority - motorists should drive carefully and should stay away from valleys or wadis where flash floods might occur and everyone should be ready by carrying umbrellas," Al Yazeedi told Khaleej Times.
Meanwhile, scattered rains are expected across the country until Wednesday evening and the amount of clouds will increase over scattered areas of the country, associated with convective clouds and rainfall of different intensity, according to an NCM forecast.
angel@khaleejtimes.com