Charged particle (negative ion)-based cloud seeding and rain enhancement trial design and implementation

Abstract

China has been suffering from water shortage for a long time. Weather modification and rainfall enhancement via cloud seeding has been proved to be effective to alleviate the problem. Current cloud seeding methods mostly rely on solid carbon dioxide and chemicals such as silver iodide and hygroscopic salts, which may have negative impacts on the environment and are expensive to operate. Lab experiments have proved the efficiency of ion-based cloud seeding compared with traditional methods. Moreover, it is also more environmentally friendly and more economical to operate at a large scale. Thus, it is necessary to carry out a field experiment to further investigate the characteristics and feasibility of the method. This paper provides the design and implementation of the ion-based cloud seeding and rain enhancement trial currently running in Northwest China. It introduces the basic principle of the trial and the devices developed for it, as well as the installation of the bases and the evaluation method design for the trial.