. You are also pursuing funding initiatives at this point too, for your research. Conspiracy theorists claim the motive for'elites' carrying out a 'weather attack', which submerged communities around Byron Bay and Lismore, was to move people into 'smart cities'. Some of the natural sources include bushfires, volcanoes and dust storms, while artificial sources of condensation nuclei include industry emissions and cloud seeding operations. Leverage advanced weather intelligence and decisioning tools for your enterprise business. Prof Bofu Yu, of Griffith Universitys Australian Rivers Institute, says in 2011 rainfall was concentrated in the west and not as widespread as the current flooding. Social Credit? Australia's 2022 floods have seen Brisbane's Southbank hit by a 'rain bomb'. In the midst of an historic megadrought, states in the American West are embracing cloud seeding to increase snow and rainfall. THE FACTS: In recent months, Australias southeastern coast has experienced some of its worst flooding in more than a decade, leading some social media users to highlight a previous instance of flooding and spread false theories about what caused it and other floods over the years. Pilots get "really violent" threats after online rumors wrongly pin devastating floods on cloud seeding. Satisfactory evidence in relation to this might be a flight path, combined with evidence of a permit or . Laurel: Your research focuses on the cloud seeding material itself, specifically the nanomaterials as you mentioned, which is a more effective tool in generating rain from existing clouds. It is not yet known whether these findings also apply to wild conditions. Dr. Zou leads a groundbreaking research project using nanotechnology to develop cloud-seeding materials. Dr. Zou: The cloud chamber is a three-dimensional experimental environment. who leads the centers work on cloud seeding, told the AP that claims linking the process to flooding lack an understanding of how cloud seeding works. CBS News reported on April 8 that many Australian pilots and aviation companies received threats regarding false claims on social media about cloud seeding. However, some research has raised doubts about its longterm effects on the environment. This shows us the risk is real to have two serious flood events in just 11 years is a pretty high frequency for a major city like Brisbane to have to deal with.. Sarah Tessendorf, a project scientist at the Colorado-based National Center for Atmospheric Research who leads the centers work on cloud seeding, told the AP that claims linking the process to flooding lack an understanding of how cloud seeding works. A rain-enhancing process known as cloud seeding caused historic flooding in Tasmania, Australia, in 2016 and along Australias southeastern coast this year. A 2016 news clip was associated with the recent floods in Australia. The silver iodide causes water droplets in the clouds to form ice crystals that become heavier and fall faster, releasing precipitation. Silver iodide helps rain drops and ice crystals grow larger and increases the amount of rain and snow that can fall from clouds. Centrelink jobseeker overhauled with new 'point-based system' . For one of the planes, only the nose and part of the propeller are visible, and the photograph appears to have been . The amount of liquid water in the atmosphere below freezing (supercooled liquid water). It can enhance precipitation in areas experiencing drought, among other uses. Conventional water resources such as rivers, lakes, and groundwater have become very limited, which is driving scientists and engineers to look for alternative water resources, says Dr. Linda Zou, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Khalifa University of Science and Technology. 3 January 2020. "These aerial captures are commissioned after major weather catastrophes and natural disasters, including following the recent east coast flooding," the NearMap spokesman said. Play it now! The first cloud seeding trials were carried out by Kraus and Squires (1947) near Sydney. But experts say the flooding has been worsened by climate change and a La Nia weather phenomenon. Our in-depth reporting reveals whats going on now to prepare you for whats coming next. Silver Iodide is safe to use in cloud seeding operations because it is found naturally in the atmosphere, soil and sediments of the Snowy Mountains region. "Handel Aviation operates aerial photography aircraft only. Reuters quoted the Bureau of Meteorology, which said Sydney had received 1,227 mm (48 inches) of rain so far this year, more than its average annual rainfall of 1,213 mm adding that many coastal towns could see up to 180 mm (7 inches) of rainfall. (Audience submitted: David Bradley)"The extent to which cloud seeding has exaggerated the flood is still . 27 Jul 2022, 11:08 AM UTC Cloud seeding in Australia. Thanks for listening. Cloud seeding got its start in 1947, with General Electric scientists working under a military contract to find a way to de-ice planes in cold weather and create fog to obscure troop movements. Laurel Ruma: From MIT Technology Review, I'm Laurel Ruma, and this is Business Lab. Laurel: Back to your technology, you filed a patent on the cloud seeding material itself. At the moment, I'm working collaboratively on a project to evaluate the effects of these materials in the open air. About this record. Prime inner-city areas including much of the South Bank precinct are underwater. Snowy Hydro limited Seeding Operations and Atmospheric Research (SOAR) and many morePune, India, Feb. 21, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The global cloud seeding market size is set to gain traction from the increasing adoption of weather modification technologies by various countries, shares . So they form super cool vapor and crystallize into ice particles. We are looking forward to moving the seeding materials from laboratory to the commercial venture for not only cloud seeding applications, but wider applications, such as different weather modification efforts, including agriculture or crop protection, hail, or storm suppression, and the artificial snow making at the ski resort. Theres no evidence to suggest it played a role in the 2022 floods in southeastern Australia, either. CORRECTION: We have added an additional source relating to cloud seeding that debates its harmless nature. . The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. My research work has been supported in their first cycle and received excellent worldwide exposure. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. Source: Snowy Hydro. You can find out more about Snowy Hydros cloud seeding operations here. Top Stories. Once this water is released from the hydropower lakes, downstream river catchments can also benefit from increased water to irrigate crops. Cloud seeding programs in the upper Colorado River Basin, for instance, cost around $1.5 million each year. CLAIM: A rain-enhancing process known as cloud seeding caused historic flooding in Tasmania, Australia, in 2016 and along Australia's southeastern coast this year. Brisbane wakes up to major flooding. To "seed" cloud formation, a small aircraft releases a cloud of particulate matter. It's very promising to know more about the effects of this seeding material. According to the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, Tasmania saw very low rainfall, around 26 percent below the average for March 2022. Cloud seeding is still practiced in the Snowy Mountains in NSW today, carried out by Snowy Hydro Limited. A team of pilots is conducting an investigation by releasing the seeding materials and in real time capturing and analyzing them. Of these four experiments, the Snowy Mountains saw statistically significant increases in rainfall during the experiment. If experts complete seeding at the right time, it leads to more moisture supply, which will eventually create rainwater. Laurel: Then in the real world where we don't have this controlled chamber, it's not quite as easy necessarily to measure that kind of success. So how did it come about, and how does it compare to the 2011 Brisbane disaster? "Cloud seeding aims to enhance the amount of rain falling from rain-bearing clouds," Mr McNamara said. Through a reverse image search, we found that 7News Melbourne posted the original broadcast on their Facebook page on June 10, 2016, with the caption: "Residents in southern Tasmania want to know why cloud seeding was conducted the day before severe flooding hit the region." Business Lab is a production of MIT Technology Review. They say it's all part of a government plan to "weaponise" the weather against its own people - a popular conspiracy trope that has been around for years. A record-breaking and relentless deluge that lasted days and flooded towns and cities along Queenslands south-east coast, submerging thousands of homes and leaving at least nine people dead. Brisbane suffered major flooding, along with the cities of Maryborough, Gympie, the Sunshine Coast, Caboolture, Toowoomba, Gatton, Ipswich, Logan City, the . These images are used to assess the damage caused by recent weather events.. Atmospheric water is one such alternative resource. Media reports estimated at least 22 . A few decades later, the US military brought cloud-seeding to the battlefield. Cloud seeding has strict requirements. The previous record was 600.4mm in 1974. Conspiracy theorists spread the false claims on social media after weeks of torrential rains led to deadly east coast floods over the past two months, engulfing homes and sweeping cars from the roads. It can enhance precipitation in areas experiencing drought, among other uses. This salt vapor then will recondense as very small particles. The comments below have not been moderated. At 10pm, Seqwater starts to release some of the water building up in Wivenhoe Dam. We can do a spectrum analysis and to find out their vapor condensation, the droplet formation, and the size and the number of the droplets. An Australian aviation company says it has received more than 100 threats following an online conspiracy theory that its pilots unleashed a flooding disaster by cloud seeding.. Oct 15 (Reuters) - Floods caused by torrential rain are hitting large swathes of southeast Australia, inundating hundreds of homes and forcing authorities to urge thousands of people to evacuate . 'Surprisingly, they have talked about cloud seeding and weather manipulation on the mainstream media so it's coming from multiple sources now. . But a probe by the Tasmanian government found that cloud seeding did not contribute to or worsen the heavy rains - a conclusion since backed by independent scientists and experts. upcoming events, and more. Recent social media posts claim that the 2022 floods in Australia were caused or exacerbated due to cloud seeding. Dr. Zou: In the natural water cycle on the earth, the sun irradiates on the surface of our planet and the water on the surface is evaporated by the heat as the vapors. "They needed a shoulder to cry on and hear their story. In their place, colder waters come up to the surface. Bartolo's move to Gold Coast came after getting arrested in a dramatic police raid in Melbourne in September 2020. Experts said that the floods in Australia were naturally occurring and cloud seeding cannot cause flooding. What are you working on now, and what are you thinking about next? What are conventional cloud seeding materials, and then how does nanotechnology come into play? The small one could be 20 meters and the large one could be like a building. one wrote. Cloud-seeding is a weather-modification practice used to artificially create or promote additional rain/snow from existing clouds. Do not sell or share my personal information. Figure 1: The area which is primarily targeted for increased precipitation from cloud seeding operations is shown in red (approximately 2110 km). On Tuesday morning evacuation orders are issued for South Ballina. China is developing a weather-modification system that aims to divert water vapour thousands of miles through the sky and bring rainfall to the country's driest regions. So it is a synergistic effect. Recent research suggests that the decades-old approach can be effective, though questions remain about how much water it can wring from the sky. The language they are using such as "rain bombs" is clear enough for me,' a commenter said. . If we had started where we started from in 2011 we would be in serious trouble.. Experimental cloud seeding technology does actually exist and has been used in places like China and the UAE. Archives of Handel Aviations website dating back to 2008 show that cloud seeding services have never been mentioned or offered on its site and there is no evidence that the company has been involved with the process. Singapore should also build more drainage canals to effectively reduce the occurrence of . Then we can later analyze at what stage the droplets formed and at what number and size of the droplets. 'Cloud seeding is being used to increase rainfall by corrupt governments to act on mother nature. March 8, 2022 . Australian National Review is Australia's first real free and independent press, one with no editorial control by the elite, but a publication that can generate critical thinkers and critical debate and hold those . The image below shows how silver iodide can be used to create snow on the leeside of a mountain range. Multiple posts on Facebook - as seen here, here and here - attempt to link Australia's floods with cloud seeding and possible government manipulation of the weather. The claims circulating online led to more than 100 threats being sent to Handel Aviation, despite it explaining the purpose of the flights on the contact page of the company's website. Everything from wind speed, air movement and updraft, or a current of rising air, can affect a storms strength, Tessendorf said. Nearmap, which analyzes and distributes the companys photos, confirmed in a statement to the AP that the claims associating Handels recent flight with cloud seeding are false. Wivenhoe has never dealt with that volume of water but it was lucky it was down at 60% at the start. Australia One Party (A1) - Update March 3, 2022. Mr Bartolo's followers claimed aircraft leaving 'chemtrails' in the sky across NSW is how the cloud seeding process is being administered. The area of cooler air in the upper atmosphere drifts into the low pressure trough and starts to deliver record-breaking downpours over Brisbane and its surrounds. The flooding in October 2022 is the latest in a series of major floods to affect eastern Australia since unusually wet conditions began in early 2021. A La Nia develops when strong winds blow the warm surface waters of the Pacific away from South America and towards Indonesia. Laurel: Your research signifies a milestone toward achieving greater water security in the world. Pictured: Local resident inspects floodwater in her street on March 31, 2022 in Lismore, NSW, Pictured: Debris from flood-damaged homes piles up in Lismore, NSW, Tuesday, March 29, 2022, Conspiracy theorist James Bartolo (pictured) claimsAustralia's east coast are part of a 'government weather warfare attack'. 2022. Cloud seeding is an artificial weather modification technique that involves introducing cloud condensation nuclei into the atmosphere, which enhances a clouds ability to produce rain and snow. Our recent flights over flooded areas of NSW and QLD are in response to the floods," a statement on the Handel Aviation website reads. Between 1967 and 1972, during the Vietnam War, it spent roughly $3 million each year on weather modification . Dr. Zou: Yeah. On March 30, 2022, BBC News reported that thousands of people had to evacuate their homes due to a severe flood on the east coast of Australia. Mar 27, 2022 Cloud Seeding, . Welcome, Dr. Zou. An atmospheric research expert told The Associated Press that cloud seeding would not change the dynamics of a cloud enough to cause massive flooding' (https://bit.ly/3NwnqJq). Essentially, we are creating a . As the water spreads to northern New South Wales, how did the so-called rain bomb develop? However, Dr. Zou explains, The cloud-seeding materials used today have been around for many decades. One patent is filed on the titanium dioxide, sodium chloride material for warm cloud seeding, and another patent is filed for porous graphite oxide, silica dioxide, nano compensated for cold cloud seeding. Feast to Famine: Mass Floods and Australia's High-Speed Rail. Cloud seeding is a real thing. Covered in this AustraliaOne Update -. Often they require minus 25 degrees or even lower. Ouse in the Derwent River catchment was one of the hardest hit areas in this week's floods. In Australia, cloud seeding is used in some areas to increase surface water runoff for use in the production of hydropower. concerns about cloud seeding were raised in relation to the 2022 Lismore and South-East Queensland floods. Farm Heroes Saga, the #4 Game on iTunes. This show is available wherever you get your podcasts. Hotter atmospheric conditions and oceans are driving much heavier rainfalls, scientists say. Read about our approach to external linking. Property damage. Some of those he contacted were surprised or angry, Berko said. Some areas that flow into the river have had 300mm of rain in just six hours. Laurel: Cloud seeding is a form of weather modification that mimics what naturally occurs in clouds but enhances the process by adding particles that can stimulate and accelerate the condensation process. What could be the reason behind mass flooding down the east coast of Australia? There is no single cause for the intense rainfall Sydney has experienced in the last few days. Read about our approach to external linking. Cloud condensation nuclei can be introduced into the atmosphere naturally or artificially. Siems, a professor who leads a Monash University team studying clouds and precipitation, said the practice is not conducted in the Northern Rivers region and it cannot cause flooding. A high tide on Sunday evening pushes the river higher as the rising ocean water effectively holds back the freshwater. 2022 . This data describing my new seeding materials property and their interactions in atmosphere. Laurel: This is very critical because the cloud seeding materials go very high up into the atmosphere where it is very cold, correct? 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