Iran Launches Cloud-Seeding Program to Combat Historic Drought

Iranian authorities have initiated a cloud-seeding operation to induce rainfall, in an effort to mitigate the country’s worst drought in decades.

According to the state news agency Irna, the process was carried out on Saturday over the Urmia Lake basin, Iran’s largest lake, which has largely dried out, leaving behind a vast salt bed.

Further operations will be conducted in East and West Azerbaijan provinces, the agency reported.

Reservoirs across the country are nearly empty, and rainfall has dropped to record lows.

Last week, President Masoud Pezeshkian warned that if sufficient rain does not fall soon, Tehran’s water supply could be rationed and residents evacuated from the capital.

Cloud seeding involves injecting chemical salts, including silver or potassium iodide, into clouds via aircraft or ground-based generators.

The chemicals help water vapor condense more easily, turning clouds into rainfall.

This technique has been used for decades and has recently been applied in the UAE to combat water shortages.

Iran’s meteorological organization reported rainfall has decreased by approximately 89% this year compared to the long-term average.

“We are currently experiencing the driest autumn the country has seen in 50 years,” said Ahmad Vazifeh, head of the National Centre for Climate and Drought Crisis Management.

Authorities also announced plans to penalize households and businesses consuming excessive water.

Meanwhile, hundreds of people gathered at a mosque in Tehran on Friday to pray for rain.

Iranian meteorologists reported light rainfall in western and northwestern regions on Saturday, with video footage showing snow at a ski resort north of Tehran for the first time this year.