Despite firing 14 flares from aircraft over Delhi skies, weather conditions weren’t conducive enough to trigger rainfall, says IIT Kanpur Director.
New Delhi, Oct 28:Hopes of bringing artificial rain to Delhi’s smog-choked skies were dashed on Tuesday as cloud seeding trials failed to produce rainfall, despite two aerial operations launched from Kanpur and Meerut. The initiative, part of the Delhi government’s anti-pollution drive, used a Cessna aircraft fitted with salt-based and silver iodide flares designed to trigger precipitation.
According to IIT Kanpur Director Manindra Agrawal, the experiment was “not completely successful” as the 14 flares fired during two sorties could not generate rain. “The conditions were not favorable , cloud density and moisture levels were insufficient,” he explained, adding that weather variability remains a major challenge for such interventions.
The latest attempt follows a similar unsuccessful trial over Burari last week, reflecting the unpredictable nature of cloud seeding in India’s changing atmospheric conditions. Experts believe sustained humidity and dense cloud presence are crucial for success ,both missing on Tuesday.
Authorities may plan further trials once meteorological conditions improve.
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