Dubai Might Have Just Solved Boise’s Water Shortage Issues
This feels like something from the future.
In case you haven't had to go outside at all this summer... it's hot. Idaho spent much of the first half of the summer in an ongoing excessive heat warning. We saw day after day of record-breaking triple-digit heat.
Although things have cooled down a bit, there are still more 100+ degree days ahead.
With hot temperatures come a plethora of reasons to use water. We've all needed more water over the last several weeks. Unfortunately, we haven't seen much rain this summer and right now it doesn't look like we'll see any precipitation for the rest of the month.
Fall can't get here soon enough in my book.
Boise is already experiencing a water shortage. In fact, KTVB is reporting that Boise residents' private wells are going dry. Some people are buying drinking water and sticking to one "water" chore a day, like laundry or dishes.
And it's not just Boise.
Other areas have started cutting back water usage with their residents. Caldwell is issuing fines to those who use their indoor water to water their lawn. I don't know about you, but I'm praying for rain.
Or perhaps we should create our own rain.
I know, it sounds bonkers, but Dubai actually just did this recently. After experiencing a drought of their own coupled with temperatures reaching 122 degrees, scientists sent drones into the sky to make it rain.
It's called "cloud seeding" and it sounds like something out of the 30th century.
Official EAU Weather posted a video of the rainfall.
Look at that! That's rain. But it's not rain that just happened spontaneously or because of some front that moved in. It was ignited by science.
So how does it work?
According to CBS News, the drones shot electrical charges into the clouds in the sky. This causes the clouds to generate rain. And for Dubai, that meant big rain drops that would actually make it to the ground before evaporating.
Upon further research I discovered that this is something that has been used in America before.
Apparently Wyoming spent 10 years experimenting with Weather Modification. USA Today reports that other states have experimented with similar practices. States like Colorado, Illinois, and even Idaho.
In fact, Idaho used something called SNOWIE to create snow clouds back in 2017. Scientists put silver iodide into winter clouds to generate precipitation. They reported that enough snow fell to fill 286 Olympic-sized swimming pools in just three days.
So with these experiments seeing success, could we actually see the end of droughts and water shortages? Could we solve many of our weather-induced problems with cloud seeding? Or will this have larger, negative impacts on climate as a whole down the road?
Tell us your thoughts below.
100 Artistic Murals Show Why Freak Alley In Boise is on Idaho's Bucket List
Gallery Credit: Kekeluv
14 Boise Businesses That Nailed It With Hilarious Signs
Gallery Credit: Michelle Heart
KEEP READING: The Most Commonly Misspelled Idaho Towns Revealed
Gallery Credit: Marco