Indian scientists hope cloud seeding can clear Delhi’s poisonous air

Indian scientists plan to seed clouds for the primary time to set off heavy rain in some areas of New Delhi, hoping this shall be sufficient to deal with the smog gripping the world’s most polluted capital for per week, the venture’s head mentioned on Thursday.

Air high quality dips in Delhi forward of winter yearly, when chilly air traps pollution from a wide range of sources together with automobiles, industries, development mud, and agricultural waste burning.

Scientists count on some cloud cowl over town round November 20 and are hoping this shall be giant sufficient – and with excessive sufficient moisture content material – to set off heavy rain through seeding with salts, mentioned Manindra Agrawal, a scientist on the Indian Institute of Technology at Kanpur, who’s main the trial.

The venture, estimated to value 10 million rupees ($120,000) for 100 sq. kilometres (38.6 sq. miles), would contain spraying into clouds a mixture of salts that embody silver iodine, Agrawal mentioned.

“We don’t expect that big a cloud that will cover entire Delhi, but a few hundred kilometres would be good,” he informed Reuters.

The native authorities of town of 20 million individuals, unfold over roughly 1,500 sq. kilometres (579 sq. miles), has already shut all faculties, stopped development actions, and mentioned it’s going to impose restrictions on automobile use to manage air pollution.

The air high quality index within the metropolis was 506 early on Thursday, which is categorised as “hazardous” by Swiss group IQAir.

Delhi wants heavy and widespread rain to scrub away the pollution, and lightweight rain might worsen the state of affairs, mentioned Gufran Beig, the founder director of the federal authorities’s air-quality monitoring company SAFAR.

Beig added that present airflow is carrying smoke from crop residue burning within the states of Punjab and Haryana to Delhi, which additionally has its personal air pollution sources and the place there may be at the moment virtually no wind.

“So unless a huge pressure is established by intense rain, this chain of transport from Punjab to Delhi will not be broken, and once it is broken it is difficult for the chain to form again for some time,” he informed Reuters.

About 38 per cent of the air pollution within the capital has been brought on by stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana, the place over 22,000 stubble burning occasions had been recorded between September 15 and November 7, in line with a authorities assertion.

Stubble burning is a follow adopted by farmers whereby crop stubble left behind after rice is harvested is burnt to shortly clear fields earlier than planting wheat crops.

The federal authorities has directed authorities in each states to “take effective actions” to examine additional stubble burning, the assertion added.

The Delhi authorities is searching for to get approval for the venture from the Supreme Court, which is listening to petitions associated to air pollution.

Several international locations have used cloud seeding to provide rain, enhance air high quality and water crops in time of drought, together with Mexico, the United States, China, Indonesia and Malaysia.

However, in 2021, a plan to seed clouds over the mountains of New Mexico to extend snowfall was pulled after allegations it might poison individuals and the surroundings.