The Middle East is known for its desert-like conditions. This is partly due to the infrequency of rainfall in the past.
In addition, the temperature is also hot. Because of the lack of trees for shade and to reduce surface temperature.
Various technologies have been applied to change these conditions. Since the 20th century, Middle Eastern countries have been planting trees and irrigating them through pipes.
These methods are still relatively expensive. Because irrigating many trees requires burning fossil energy, not to mention energy for pumping water from underground.
Therefore, governments in the Middle East continue to seek solutions to overcome this problem. Solutions that require lower costs and require fewer workers in terms of operation.
City With Full Sunlight
Unlike Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq, the United Arab Emirates is located close to the equator, which makes the climate there predominantly hot, with low rainfall during the rainy season.
In fact, the temperature there has reached over 50 degrees Celsius before. This occurred in 2021.
Many residents prefer to stay indoors during that time. According to Khaleej Times, even a Pakistani resident shared that he was overwhelmed by the high temperature during the summer.
Dubai is an attractive city for various foreign nationals to settle in, ranging from Indians to Europeans, as the taxes are lower compared to other countries.
With the growing real estate sector, the population in Dubai continues to rise. Finding a solution to overcome the hot temperature, such as artificial rain, is important to enhance Dubai's appeal.
Artificial Rain
Rain can occur naturally or artificially. Artificial rain is created through human intervention.
Usually, artificial rain occurs when humans do something to the clouds to change the water particles in the clouds so that they fall to the ground.
Some people do this by seeding clouds with salt, but this method is not environmentally friendly as salt can pollute the soil. Another method is to seed clouds with silver iodide particles, but this method is more expensive.
However, this method only works as long as there are clouds passing over a certain area. If an area is experiencing a cloud crisis, the potential for rain is zero.
Clouds are formed from evaporated water that clusters together to form clouds. The wind controls whether or not clouds pass over a certain area.
Usage of Laser
The problem with artificial rain is the cost and environmental issues. Without both, instead of providing benefits, it can bring economic losses.
One of the methods used to reduce rain while being environmentally friendly and cost-effective is using lasers. The laser is aimed at clustered clouds to produce rain.
The laser used is a high-powered laser. This is because stimulating water particles in the air to form clusters and fall to the ground requires a high-powered laser.
This method is relatively inexpensive and environmentally friendly compared to using salt or silver. There is almost no waste from the laser, and the cost can be low if the battery's energy is generated by solar power.
The government of the United Arab Emirates has used lasers to induce rain, specifically in 2021. It was indeed effective in transforming clouds into rain, which can reduce the city's temperature and water the plants.
Artificial Intelligence
The future advancement in rain management involves the involvement of AI in this matter. AI can make this work more efficient and cost-effective.
For example, AI can map clouds and wind movements to identify when laser shooting operations can be carried out. With this, Dubai will not miss the most suitable moment to bring rain.
Drones integrated into an AI system can also reduce costs for rainfall. Therefore, there will only be an operator monitoring the process.
Furthermore, AI can also reduce the risk of accidents. For example, replacing pilots with drones can minimize casualties in case of accidents.
With the existing ecosystem in Dubai, it is not impossible to create excellent Artificial Intelligence to perform these tasks. Moreover, using AI can make it easier to attract investors.
