译者：拿了两个气象学位的我，虽然不做气象科研了，依然对人工降雨有“感情”。

原文来自维基百科，自由的百科全书

阿拉伯联合酋长国的人工降雨是政府用来解决该国水资源挑战的一项策略。 人工降雨也称为人工降水和人工制雨（man made precipitation and artificial rain making）。[1] 阿拉伯联合酋长国是波斯湾地区最早使用人工降雨技术的国家之一。 阿联酋科学家使用人工降雨技术来补充该国因气候极其炎热而导致的水（不）安全问题。[2] 他们使用气象雷达持续监测该国的大气状态。[3] 预报员和科学家估计，在晴朗的大气中，人工增雨作业可以使降雨量增加 30%-35%；在潮湿的大气中增加 10-15%。 [4] 这种做法引起了人们对环境影响的担忧，因为很难预测长期的全球影响。 [5]

气候需求

阿联酋气候干旱，年降雨量不足100毫米，地表水蒸发率高，地下水补给率低。 过去几十年来，在12 月至 3 月的冬季，阿联酋的降雨量一直波动。

阿联酋是一个非常干燥的地区，除了海岸和阿联酋与阿曼的边界湿度很高之外。 [6] 阿联酋位于沙尘热点地区，导致干旱气候。[7] 由于来自西部和西北部的锋面系统，每年降雨量只有几英寸，因此降雨量很少甚至没有。[6][5] 降雨量的缺乏让科学家和政府担心未来的水安全。[5]

由于工业化和人口增长，对水的需求迅速增加。 [7] 当前的资源正在枯竭，稀缺问题正在出现。[8][6] 因此，阿联酋正在寻求人工降雨技术来提高水安全以及可再生性，以应对可能出现的水和粮食短缺问题。[8][9]

历史

自 20 世纪 40 年代以来，科学家们一直在试验人工降雨技术。[10] 阿联酋的人工降雨计划于 20 世纪 90 年代末启动，是最早利用该技术的中东国家之一。 [11] 2005年，阿联酋与世界气象组织[12] (WMO)合作，设立了阿联酋促进人工影响天气科学和实践卓越奖。 2010 年，气象部门开始实施人工降雨项目[13]。 该项目于 2010 年 7 月开始，耗资 1100 万美元，成功在迪拜和阿布扎比沙漠制造暴雨。 [14]

政府参与

阿联酋政府于 2015 年制定了一项名为阿联酋增雨科学研究计划 (UAEREP) 的研究计划。[11][7] 它允许科学家和研究人员提出他们的潜在解决方案并进行研究以提高人工降雨技术的准确性。 [15] 在提出研究提案后，科学家将通过 UAEREP 获得资助。[7] 其主要目标包括推进科学、技术和增雨的实施，并鼓励对研究经费和研究伙伴关系进行额外投资，以推进该领域的发展，增加降雨量并确保全球水安全。 [16] 到2001 年初，UAEREP 与美国国家大气研究中心 (NCAR)、南非威特沃特斯兰德大学、美国国家航空航天局 (NASA) 合作开展研究项目[17]

增雨科学计划是阿拉伯联合酋长国总统事务部的一项倡议。 它由位于阿布扎比的阿联酋国家气象与地震学中心[18] (NCMS) 监管。[19]

2014 年，阿联酋总共执行了 187 次人工降雨任务，每架飞机大约需要 3 小时才能瞄准 5 到 6 个云，每次操作成本为 3,000 美元。 [20] 2017年，阿联酋执行了214个任务，[21]，2018年执行了184个任务，2019年启动了247个任务。[11] 2020 年与美国的合作伙伴进行了新技术测试，以测试纳米材料用于人工降雨的用途。 [22]

技术

降雨量的增加考虑了不同雨云类型（但通常集中于对流云）中发生的地面和空中过程。 阿联酋使用基于飞机和无人机控制的吸湿云人工降雨，而不是传统的随机飞机人工降雨，因为后者没有考虑雨云的不同特性，特别是在阿联酋等多尘和干旱地区。 [7] 自 2021 年以来，这些设备已配备了电荷发射仪器和定制传感器的有效载荷，这些传感器可在低空飞行并向空气分子传递电荷。 [23] 吸湿性人工降雨使用氯化钾和氯化钠等天然盐，这些盐预先存在于具有吸湿性耀斑的大气中。 通过引入吸湿粒子，它增强了自然雨粒子，从而开始碰撞聚结过程。 [7]

目前，阿联酋主要在与阿曼接壤的东部山区进行人工降雨，以提高含水层和水库的水位（to raise levels in aquifers and reservoirs）。 [24] 该国拥有分布在阿联酋全国各地的 75 个联网自动气象站、7 个空气质量站、由 5 个固定雷达和 1 个移动雷达组成的多普勒天气雷达网络，以及分布在全国各地用于人工降雨作业的 6 架 Beechcraft King Air C90 飞机。 [24 ]

对环境造成的影响

洪水

人工降雨带来的大量降雨极大地影响了阿联酋缺乏装备的基础设施。 作为 2020 年 1 月阿联酋增雨科学研究计划的一部分，阿联酋国家气象和地震中心于 2019 年 10 月进行的人工降雨实验导致了洪水。[25][26] 作为阿联酋增雨科学研究计划的一部分，阿联酋国家气象和地震学中心于 2019 年进行的人工降雨实验引发了 2020 年的洪水。 由于排水系统无法处理大量水，因此需要泵来排除多余的水，从而严重影响商业和住宅区。 [26] 预计阿联酋将投资5亿迪拉姆（1.361亿美元）保护社区。

沙迦市是阿联酋人口最多的城市之一，在人工降雨活动后已经经历了严重的洪水。更好的数据有助于确保人工降雨活动不会超过城市排水系统的阈值。 应评估其他基础设施以减轻潜在的损害。 研究人员建议定期更新IDF曲线（译者：intensity-duration-frequency curves ？），以获得全面的降雨数据。[27]

大气气溶胶

人工降雨任务需要向大气中发射盐和银碘晶体。[28] 颗粒物或微污染物浓度的增加会增加患呼吸道疾病的风险。[这里需要加上引用] 2017 年，在人工降雨任务前后进行了一项研究，记录了颗粒物的增加，与人工降雨活动月份相关。 [1] 研究人员将此归因于在人工降雨期间未在雨中分散的剩余银碘晶体。[1] 一项名为阿联酋统一气溶胶实验 (UAE2) 的研究，评估了阿联酋特别是人工降雨的进展和有效性。 [7] 研究人员发现，在人工降雨的地区，降雨量趋势显着增加。[7] 最近发现，参与人工降雨实验的阿联酋 20 多个地区的颗粒物浓度较高。[5][1] 由于无法进行受控实验以及直接追踪的困难，人工降雨的整体环境影响很难测量。 [5]

Cloud seeding in the United Arab Emirates

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Cloud seeding in the United Arab Emirates is a strategy used by the government to address water challenges in the country. Cloud seeding is also referred to as man made precipitation and artificial rain making.^[1] The United Arab Emirates is one of the first countries in the Persian Gulf region to use cloud seeding technology. UAE scientists use cloud seeding technology to supplement the country's water insecurity, which stems from the extremely hot climate.^[2] They use weather radar to continuously monitor the atmosphere of the country.^[3] Forecasters and scientists have estimated that cloud seeding operations can enhance rainfall by as much as 30-35% percent in a clear atmosphere, and up to 10-15% in a more humid atmosphere.^[4] This practice has caused concerns regarding the impact on the environment because it is difficult to predict the long-term global implications.^[5]

Climate needs

The UAE has an arid climate with less than 100mm per year of rainfall, a high evaporation rate of surface water and a low groundwater recharge rate. Rainfall in the UAE has been fluctuating over the last few decades in winter season between December and March.

The climate of the UAE is a very dry region aside from the coast and the border of the UAE and Oman, where there is high humidity.^[6] The UAE is located in a dust hotspot that contributes to the arid climate.^[7] There is little to no rainfall, due to frontal systems from the west and northwest, which yields few inches of rainfall per year.^[6][5] This lack of rainfall has scientists and the government worried about water security in the future.^[5]

Due to industrialization and population growth, the demand for water has rapidly increased.^[7] Current resources are being depleted and scarcity issues are arising.^[8][6] As a result, the UAE is looking to cloud seeding technologies to increase water security as well as renewability to combat water and food scarcity that may arise.^[8][9]

History

Scientists have been experimenting with cloud seeding technology since the 1940s.^[10] The cloud-seeding program in the UAE was initiated in the late 1990s, as one of the first Middle Eastern countries to utilize this technique.^[11] In 2005, the UAE launched the UAE Prize for Excellence in Advancing the Science and Practice of Weather Modification in collaboration with the World Meteorological Organization^[12] (WMO). In 2010, cloud seeding began as a project by weather authorities to create artificial rain.^[13] The project, which began in July 2010 and cost $11 million USD, succeeded in creating rain storms in the Dubai and Abu Dhabi deserts.^[14]

Government involvement

The UAE government developed a research program called the UAE Research Program for Rain Enhancement Science (UAEREP) in 2015.^[11][7] It allows scientists and researchers to pitch their potential solutions and conduct research to improve the accuracy of cloud seeding technology.^[15] After pitching research proposals, scientists are awarded grants through the UAEREP.^[7] Among its key goals are advancing the science, technology, and implementation of rain enhancement and encouraging additional investments in research funding and research partnerships to advance the field, increasing rainfall and ensuring water security globally.^[16] By early 2001, the UAEREP was conducting research projects in cooperation with the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in the U.S., the Witwatersrand University in South Africa, the National Aeronautics and Space Agency (NASA) in the U.S.^[17]

The Program for Rain Enhancement Science is an initiative of the United Arab Emirates Ministry of Presidential Affairs. It is overseen by the UAE National Center of Meteorology & Seismology^[18] (NCMS) based in Abu Dhabi.^[19]

In 2014, a total of 187 missions was sent to seed clouds in the UAE with each aircraft taking about three hours to target five to six clouds at a cost of $3,000 per operation.^[20] In 2017 the UAE had 214 missions,^[21] and in 2018, it had 184 missions, and 247 missions were launched in 2019.^[11] Tests of new technologies were done in 2020 with partners in the United States to test the use of nanomaterials for seeding.^[22]

Technology

The augmentation of rainfall considers both the ground-based and airborne processes that occur in different rain cloud types (but generally focused on convective clouds). The UAE utilizes operational aircraft-based and drone-controlled hygroscopic cloud seeding as opposed to conventional randomized aircraft seeding, as it does not take into consideration the varying properties of rain clouds, especially present in dusty and arid regions like the UAE.^[7] Since 2021, the devices have been equipped with a payload of electric-charge emission instruments and customized sensors that fly at low altitudes and deliver an electric charge to air molecules.^[23] Hygroscopic cloud seeding uses natural salts such as potassium chloride and sodium chloride that pre-exist in the atmosphere with hygroscopic flares. By introducing Hygroscopic particles, it enhances the natural rain particles which begins a collision-coalescence process.^[7]

At present, the UAE mostly cloud seeds in the eastern mountains on the border to Oman to raise levels in aquifers and reservoirs.^[24]  The country has 75 networked automatic weather stations distributed across the country UAE, 7 air quality stations, a Doppler weather radar network of five stationary and one mobile radar, and six Beechcraft King Air C90 aircraft distributed across the country for cloud seeding operations.^[24]

Environmental impact

Flooding

The influx of rainfall from cloud seeding greatly affects the non-equipped infrastructure of the UAE. A cloud seeding experiment conducted in October 2019 by the UAE National Center of Meteorology & Seismology as part of the UAE Research Program for Rain Enhancement Science in January 2020 resulted in flooding.^[25][26] In 2020, a flood resulted from a cloud seeding experiment conducted in 2019 by the UAE National Center of Meteorology & Seismology as part of the UAE Research Program for Rain Enhancement Science. Pumps were needed to remove excess water because drainage systems could not handle the volume of water, severely impacting commercial and residential areas.^[26] It is estimated that the UAE will invest 500 million dirhams ($136.1 million) to protect 

Sharjah city is one of the most populous cities in the UAE and has already experienced significant flooding after cloud seeding activity. Better data can help ensure that the seeding activity will not exceed the threshold of the city’s drainage systems. Other infrastructure should be evaluated to mitigate potential damages. Researchers suggest that regular updates of IDF curves are made in order to achieve comprehensive rainfall data.^[27]

Atmospheric aerosols

Cloud seeding missions require firing salts and silver iodine crystals into the atmosphere.^[28] The increased concentration of particulate matter, or micro-pollutants, increases risk for respiratory illnesses.^{[citation needed]} In 2017, a study was conducted before and after cloud seeding missions, which recorded an increase of particulate matter, correlating to the months of active artificial rain.^[1] Researchers attribute this to left over silver iodine crystals that were not dispersed in the rain during the cloud seeding months.^[1] A study was conducted called the UAE Unified Aerosol Experiment (UAE2) to assess the progress and effectiveness of cloud seeding specifically in the UAE.^[7] Researchers found a significant increase in rainfall trends in areas with cloud seeding.^[7] More recently, over 20 regions in the UAE that participated in cloud seeding experiments have a higher concentration of particulate matter.^[5][1] The overall environmental impact of cloud seeding is difficult measure due to the inability to perform controlled experiments along with the difficulty in direct tracing.^[5]