Beijing Weather Modification Office
Encyclopedia
The Beijing Weather Modification Office is a unit of the Beijing Meteorological Bureau tasked with weather control
in Beijing
and its surrounding areas, including parts of Hebei
and Inner Mongolia
. The Beijing Weather Modification Office form a part of China's nationwide weather control effort, believed to be the world's largest; it employs 37,000 people nationwide, who seed clouds
by firing rockets and shells loaded with silver iodide
into them. According to Zhang Qiang, head of the Office, cloud seeding increased precipitation in Beijing by about one-eighth in 2004; nationwide, similar efforts are believed to have added 7.4 Tcuft of rain between 1995 and 2003.
The work of the Office is largely aimed at hailstorm
prevention or making rain
to end droughts; they have also induced precipitation for purposes of firefighting or counteracting the effect of severe dust storm
s, as they did in the aftermath of one storm in April 2006 which dropped 300,000 tonnes of dust and sand on the city and was believed to have been the largest in five years. Their technology was also used to create snow on New Year's Day
in 1997. Other proposed future uses for induced precipitation include lowering temperatures in summer, in hopes of reducing electricity consumption. More prominently, they were enlisted by the Chinese government to attempt to ensure that the 2008 Summer Olympics
are free of rain, by breaking up clouds headed towards the capital and forcing them to drop rain on outlying areas instead. The office claims to have created a snowstorm in November of 2009.
Weather control
Weather control is the act of manipulating or altering certain aspects of the environment to produce desirable changes in weather. Weather control can have the goal of preventing damaging weather, such as hurricanes or tornadoes, from occurring; of causing beneficial weather, such as rainfall in...
in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
and its surrounding areas, including parts of Hebei
Hebei
' is a province of the People's Republic of China in the North China region. Its one-character abbreviation is "" , named after Ji Province, a Han Dynasty province that included what is now southern Hebei...
and Inner Mongolia
Inner Mongolia
Inner Mongolia is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China, located in the northern region of the country. Inner Mongolia shares an international border with the countries of Mongolia and the Russian Federation...
. The Beijing Weather Modification Office form a part of China's nationwide weather control effort, believed to be the world's largest; it employs 37,000 people nationwide, who seed clouds
Cloud seeding
Cloud seeding, a form of intentional weather modification, is the attempt to change the amount or type of precipitation that falls from clouds, by dispersing substances into the air that serve as cloud condensation or ice nuclei, which alter the microphysical processes within the cloud...
by firing rockets and shells loaded with silver iodide
Silver iodide
Silver iodide is a yellow, inorganic, photosensitive iodide of silver used in photography, in medicine as an antiseptic, and in rainmaking for cloud seeding.-Crystal structure:...
into them. According to Zhang Qiang, head of the Office, cloud seeding increased precipitation in Beijing by about one-eighth in 2004; nationwide, similar efforts are believed to have added 7.4 Tcuft of rain between 1995 and 2003.
The work of the Office is largely aimed at hailstorm
Hailstorm
Hailstorm may refer to:* Hail, a type of precipitation* Hailstorm , a fictional character* Hailstorm , 2010* Hailstorm , a 1994 album by Barathrum-See also:* Halestorm, an American rock band...
prevention or making rain
Rainmaking
Rainmaking refers to the act of attempting to artificially induce or increase precipitation, usually to stave off drought.In the US, rainmaking was attempted by traveling showmen. It was practiced in the old west but may have reached a peak during the dust bowl drought of the American West and...
to end droughts; they have also induced precipitation for purposes of firefighting or counteracting the effect of severe dust storm
Dust storm
A dust / sand storm is a meteorological phenomenon common in arid and semi-arid regions. Dust storms arise when a gust front or other strong wind blows loose sand and dirt from a dry surface. Particles are transported by saltation and suspension, causing soil to move from one place and deposition...
s, as they did in the aftermath of one storm in April 2006 which dropped 300,000 tonnes of dust and sand on the city and was believed to have been the largest in five years. Their technology was also used to create snow on New Year's Day
New Year's Day
New Year's Day is observed on January 1, the first day of the year on the modern Gregorian calendar as well as the Julian calendar used in ancient Rome...
in 1997. Other proposed future uses for induced precipitation include lowering temperatures in summer, in hopes of reducing electricity consumption. More prominently, they were enlisted by the Chinese government to attempt to ensure that the 2008 Summer Olympics
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...
are free of rain, by breaking up clouds headed towards the capital and forcing them to drop rain on outlying areas instead. The office claims to have created a snowstorm in November of 2009.