UAE: Hailstorms, rain lash some parts; cloud-seeding operations to continue throughout summer

The local effect of convective clouds will give the UAE rains during the summer months, says weather official

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by

Nandini Sircar

Published: Tue 20 Jun 2023, 6:00 AM

Last updated: Tue 20 Jun 2023, 10:00 PM

Heavy rain and hailstorms have battered some parts of the country as the UAE's National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) said residents could expect some unstable weather patterns in June, consistent with the usual trends.

The Met department reported rain accompanied by hail in Muzeira (Ajman), Wadi Sharm and recorded light to heavy rainfall in various parts of the country. The national weather forecaster said summer rains are not uncommon in the UAE as the country typically experiences low monsoon pressure from India.

Weather monitoring account Storm Centre posted several videos on Twitter showing flooding in the valleys, people enjoying the cooler temperature and gathering hail stones. They also shared videos of motorists navigating through heavy rain and strong winds while driving.

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Dr Ahmed Habib from the National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) explained to Khaleej Times: “We’ve been witnessing cloud cover over certain parts of the country. But if we talk about the entire span of summer, we do have rains due to climate change. The mountains in the east will be affected. We have a chance of convective clouds over the Eastern region that is likely to give us rains.

“The local effect of convective clouds will give us rains during the summer months. This has been the trend in the month of June in general.”

Cloud seeding

The meteorologist also said the rain-bearing capacity of these convective clouds is perfect for cloud seeding.

“Cloud seeding operations can prove efficient due to the formation of the convective clouds that triggers more rainfall. If any convective cloud formation happens in any part of the UAE, then we will definitely be undertaking the operation of cloud seeding,” Dr Habib added.

Cloud seeding is a method of artificially encouraging a cloud to produce rain. It began in the UAE in the late 1990s, and since then, there has been an increase in the missions conducted annually.

Cloud seeding involves flying an aircraft to a cloud that has tiny rain droplets present. The aircraft shoots salt flares into the cloud to enhance rainfall.

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Nandini Sircar

Published: Tue 20 Jun 2023, 6:00 AM

Last updated: Tue 20 Jun 2023, 10:00 PM

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