Iranian authorities have sprayed clouds with chemicals to induce rainin an attempt to combat the worst drought the country has suffered in decades. From a report: The process, known as cloud seeding, took place over the Lake Urmia basin on Saturday, Iran’s official Irna news agency reported. Urmia is the largest lake in Iran, but it has largely dried up, leaving a huge bed of salt. More operations will be carried out in eastern and western Azerbaijan, the agency said.
Precipitation is at historic lows and reservoirs are almost empty. Last week, President Masoud Pezeshkian warned that if it does not rain soon enough, Tehran’s water supply could be rationed and people could be evacuated from the capital. Cloud seeding involves injecting chemical salts, such as silver or potassium iodide, into clouds via aircraft or via generators on the ground. The water vapor can then condense more easily and become rain. The technique has been around for decades and the United Arab Emirates has used it in recent years to help address water shortages. Iran’s meteorological organization said rainfall had decreased by about 89% this year compared to the long-term average, Irna reported.
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