Kelleher.Lynch.Fall.2010.Wiki

CLOUD SEEDING

By: Denis Kelleher and Myles Lynch

﻿THE PROBLEM AT HAND

Global Warming, weather you believe it to be caused by us as humans or that it is just a part of natural cycle is happening. The average temperatures across the world are in fact increasing. While the changes in temperature may seem to be so small that they have a minimal impact if any at all on humans and other species, there are in fact hundreds if not thousands of different species of both plants and animals that are feeling negative affects of global temperature change. They range from migratory birds to many species of marine life whose population numbersare dwindling in many parts of the world. According to the Defenders of Wildlife, some of the wildlife species hardest hit so far by global warming include caribou, arctic foxes, toads, polar bears, penguins, gray wolves, tree swallows, painted turtles and salmon. The group fears that unless we take decisive steps to reverse global warming, more and more species will join the list of wildlife populations that are being pushed to the brink of extinction by changing climate.



You may not have sympathy for the plants an animals affected by climate change but what about human beings? The genocide in Darfur is at least in part caused by climate change which has caused a drastic decrease in the amount of rainfall in the region leading to dried up crops and starvation for many of the nomadic clans in the region. As a result these clans have in crouched upon each other and are competing for food and water to live. The U.N. has described it as the world's worst current humanitarian crisis, with estimate s of over 200,000 dead and more than 2.1 million displaced in four years.



The main cause for global warming is the burning of fossil fuels. Fossil fuels are natural resources that form over millions of years composed of decomposing organic matter composed of hydrocarbons. These fossil fuels include coal, oil and natural gas. These fuels are used to generate electricity, heat our homes, power and power our vehicles. Fossil fuels are the lifeline of industry that has transformed the world more rapidly in technological advancements in the last 150 years. However the burning of fossil fuels release carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that is used by plants to grow and thrive. Greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide are what keep the earth warm by trapping heat from the sun and without them the average temperature on earth would be much colder by about 60 degrees Fahrenheit, however there is currently too much carbon dioxide being produced with no signs of slowing down.

CLOUD SEEDING

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 * How it works : Cloud seeding is a form of weather modification that ultimately aims to stimulate precipitation. It is carried out from the air or from the ground. It uses chemicals to change the process a cloud goes through in order to produce precipitation. There are three cloud seeding methods: static,dynamic, and hygroscopic. Static cloud seeding spreads chemicals like silver iodide into clouds to increase their efficiency in producing precipitation. Hygroscopic cloud seeding is the most promising of the three according to. Dr. William R. Cotton, a professor of atmospheric science at Colorado State University. Hygroscopic cloud seeding uses flares or explosives to disperse salt throughout the lower section of a cloud, and the salt grows as it joins with water. Dynamic cloud seeding is the most complex method. This method boosts vertical air currents, which encourages more water to pass through the clouds. The dynamic method is the most unreliable because it encompasses up to 11 stages. The best aspect of cloud seeing is it's potential to generate water. Cloud seeding will ideally help to solve the monumental problem or water shortage that is created by global warming.




 * Water Generation: ﻿Cloud seeding has many practical uses such as increasing the freshwater supply and decreasing droughts worldwide. As of right now, cloud seeing can create a 5% to 30% increase in precipitation during the winter and up to a 100% increase during warm seasons. These records are significant because contain real evidence to support the notion that cloud seeding can solve the water shortage problem, as it can reduce droughts and produce more fresh water for a variety of uses such drinking and agriculture.

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 * Effective Uses : Cloud seeding is an effective and dynamic solution to many different water problems.
 * Reduce Droughts
 * Increase the supply of fresh water
 * Reduces the size of hailstones
 * Stop major storms from forming
 * Reduce the amount of fog at airports
 * Create snow at ski resorts


 * Critics: ﻿There are many critics that question the of cloud seeding. These critics are detrimental to the development of cloud seeding methods because criticism effects the funding for cloud seeding projects. Some scientists claim that rainfall happens only by chance, and that the effectiveness of cloud seeding is relatively low. "By comparing rainfall statistics with periods of seeding, we were able to show that increments of rainfall happened by chance," says Prof. Alpert. "For the first time, we were able to explain the increases in rainfall through changing weather patterns" instead of the use of cloud seeding." In 2003, the United States National Academy of Sciences declared that 30 years of studies had not produced " convincing" evidence that weather modification works.There is also a concern regarding what happens chemicals of cloud seeding are effected by the wind. Sometimes the wind carries the "seed" off target, rendering the system useless. There are questions about the safety of silver iodide regarding humans, plants, and animals. Cloud seeding is also not widely regulated, meaning that anyone can experiment with it, which could eventually cause problems. The efficiency of cloud seeding is relevant for the countries that are developing it because it is a very expensive process, as many countries do not want to be dumping millions of dollars per year for a system that produces sub-par results.


 * Who's Using It: ﻿About 24 countries currently use cloud seeing as a form of weather modification. China is a major proponent of cloud seeding, as they currently have the largest cloud seeding system in the world. They have been effectively utilizing cloud seeding for the past decade, such as when they used it at the 2008 olympics in Beijing to clear the area of pollution. Cloud seeding has gained increasing interest in North America, as many projects have started throughout the continent. Many commercial companies, such as Aero Systems Incorporated, Atmospherics Incorporated, North American Weather Consultants , Weather Modification Incorporated, are solely based around cloud seeding. Many European and African countries are actively pursuing cloud seeding development.[[image:Cloud_seeding_(PSF).jpg width="795" height="312"]]

One scientist explained the trouble for funding his project, "The program served the community in important ways but didn’t bring in many grants or closely align with the core mission of research, institute President Stephen Wells said.“I don’t have any sources of money to go to keep these parts of DRI functional,” Wells said. “It was a terrible choice I was forced to make.” We think that powers such as the government should increase the funding for the research and development of cloud seeding. Cloud seeding has tremendous potential to solve many world problems.
 * The Future: ﻿The process of cloud seeding still contains much room for development. One of the main issues is the funding of the development. Many companies are skeptical to fund cloud seeding programs due to the criticisms it has faced.

References

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sn5g4Gt_EJw&feature=player_embedded http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fg7J8P-uXqM&feature=player_embedded http://www.edwardsaquifer.net/cloudseeding.html http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/11/101101125949.htm http://www.lvrj.com/news/funding-avoids-shutdown-of-decades-long-program-64478477.html http://www.lightwatcher.com/chemtrails/cloud_seeding.html