UAE ‘flew cloud-seeding flights which increase rainfall’ just days before 18 months worth of rain led to ‘apocalyptic’ flooding

The United Arab Emirates allegedly “flew cloud-seeding flights” on Sunday – just days before Dubai saw the heaviest rain ever recorded.

Flight-tracking data shows one aircraft affiliated with the UAE’s cloud-seeding efforts flying across the country.

The region relies on cloud-seeding – a technique which uses an aircraft to shoot small particles, such as silver iodides, into clouds to speed up condensation and cause rainfall.

Ahmed Habib, a meteorologist at the UAE’s National Centre for Meteorology (NCM) also suggested that cloud-seeding planes were flown in the days before the “apocalyptic” rainfall.

The National Centre for Meteorology (NCM) confirmed that the operation was performed on Sunday and Monday.

However, the agency denied that the technique took place on Tuesday in the hours before the storm.

Yesterday saw heavy rain and flash floods sweep across the Gulf, particularly in Oman – compared to the 3.4 inches of rain a year which usually pours down on Dubai.

The government confirmed that remote learning would take place on Wednesday for private schools as well as government employees in Dubai due to the stormy weather conditions.

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Rainwater poured into people’s homes as cars floated around after being abandoned.

Some experts argue that cloud-seeding cannot be to blame for the heavy downpour as it is estimated the technique can only increase seasonal rainfall by 10 to 30 per cent.

Professor Maartren Ambaum told GB News: “This is on a completely different scale, this is a properly big weather system and mesoscale weather system.

“Cloud seeding work operates on individual clouds and tries to make those clouds rain.”

He added: “In any case this event was too big and too energetic for cloud seeding to have any relevance or influence.”

The National Center for Meteorology “urged residents to take all the precautions… and to stay away from areas of flooding and water accumulation”.

The Gulf region is facing a number of meteorological issues, with Oman confirming 18 people were killed during flash floods.