30-04-2025
UAE using AI, space tech to revolutionize, ramp-up cloud seeding operations
The UAE is revolutionizing its cloud seeding program from experimental technology into a data-driven operation using AI and space tech that forms a critical component of the nation's water security strategy, according to experts at the country's leading space technology company.
In a region receiving less than 100 millimeters of rainfall annually and facing growing water scarcity concerns, the UAE is leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) and Earth Observation (EO) technologies to maximize the effectiveness of its weather modification efforts.
'AI and satellite imagery have turned the UAE's cloud seeding efforts from guesswork into a precise, data-driven tool for weather modification,' Dr. Prashanth Marpu, Chief Technology Officer at Bayanat Smart Solutions, which operates under Space42, the UAE's national space technology company, told Al Arabiya English.
The advancements come one year after unprecedented rainfall caused significant flooding across parts of the UAE, highlighting both the potential and risks associated with weather modification technologies.
The UAE has conducted cloud seeding operations for more than two decades – with as many as 300 cloud-seeding missions carried out across the country in 2024, according to the UAE Research Program for Rain Enhancement Science – National Center of Meteorology (UAEREP-NCM) – but recent technological developments have elevated these efforts to new levels of sophistication and effectiveness.
'What was once a nascent practice is now guided by predictive analytics, real-time modelling, and advanced environmental monitoring,' Marpu said.
Space42 integrates synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites and high-resolution optical sensors to provide continuous monitoring of atmospheric and ground conditions. GIQ, the company's AI-powered platform, processes these inputs, which forecasts cloud behavior, wind dynamics, and terrain saturation.
The system operates in three phases, explained Marpu.
'First, our Foresight SAR Constellation provides high-resolution, all-weather imaging, complemented by ongoing High Altitude Platform Stations monitoring. Second, GIQ aggregates and analyzes these data streams. Third, the platform generates actionable insights that guide authorities in deploying targeted weather modification efforts.'
The UAE's intensified focus on water security comes amid rising water usage across the arid country. In 2022, the total quantity of water consumption in UAE was approximately 1.75 billion cubic meters – rising from 1.37 billion cubic meters in 2010, according to research company Statista. The UAE's Water Security Strategy 2036 has set targets for reducing water demand by 21 percent and increasing the reuse of treated water to 95 percent.
'In the UAE, where per capita water consumption ranks among the highest globally and over 80 percent of freshwater comes from desalination, water security has become a national priority,' said Marpu. 'The UAE Water Security Strategy 2036 sets out clear goals to reduce overall demand, diversify sustainable water supplies, and enhance emergency preparedness.'
As part of this goal, cloud seeding has evolved from an experimental approach to what Marpu described as an operational capability driven by data, precision, and measurable impact.
Learning from 2024 floods
Last April's extreme rainfall event – the highest-ever recorded rainfall in more than 75 years – which caused widespread disruption across the UAE, served as both a challenge and an opportunity for the country's weather monitoring and forecasting capabilities.
Space42's systems were put to the test during the 2024 floods.
'Digital Twin simulations predicted high-risk zones ahead of the storm, giving authorities time to prepare,' Marpu said. 'As the storm unfolded, SAR satellites provided real-time imagery through dense cloud cover, while GIQ processed the data instantly.'
This real-time intelligence enabled emergency teams to deploy resources rapidly, prioritize evacuations, and plan supply routes once the storm passed, according to Space42.
The company claims similar technology has been applied to sandstorm forecasting.
'During the Touz sandstorm in April 2025, Space42's customized dust monitoring model tracked dust emission, transport, and deposition, delivering early alerts that allowed governments to issue public health warnings and mitigate the storm's peak impact,' Marpu explained.
These applications demonstrate how the same technologies being deployed for cloud seeding can be repurposed for broader climate risk management.
AI-led cloud seeding missions
A key advantage of AI-driven cloud seeding is the technology's ability to learn from each mission, creating a continuously improving system.
'With every seeding mission, we collect new data that strengthens future predictions and seeding plans,' said Dr. Marpu. 'Over time, this builds a smarter, more cost-effective program that can support national goals for water security and climate resilience.'
This feedback loop is transforming cloud seeding from a static intervention into what Space42 describes as a 'continuously responsive system.'
The current approach uses a combination of satellite data, weather forecasting, and AI to identify optimal cloud seeding windows, ensuring efforts are targeted and effective while reducing waste.
'Our AI platform, GIQ, integrates real-time satellite imagery, weather data, and ground-level information to forecast environmental conditions,' Marpu said. 'It helps identify the optimal cloud seeding windows, ensuring efforts are targeted and effective, reducing waste and improving results.'
AI is expected to take on an even more prominent role in weather modification operations.
'AI is set to make weather modification smarter, faster, and more adaptive. What is emerging today will become standard practice within the next decade,' Marpu predicted. 'In the near term, AI will coordinate end-to-end cloud seeding missions, detect optimal atmospheric conditions, chart flight paths, and direct unmanned aerial vehicle-based payload releases with minimal human input.'
This automation is expected to reduce response times, increase precision, and improve overall mission efficiency.
The long-term vision is even more ambitious.
'Looking further ahead, AI systems will become self-learning. Drawing on live atmospheric data, seasonal climate trends, and mission histories, these models will adjust deployment strategies in real-time, modifying seeding efforts mid-flight based on evolving conditions,' said Marpu.
This evolution would represent a significant advancement in weather modification technology, potentially making such operations more economically viable and environmentally responsible.
Beyond cloud seeding
The technologies being deployed for cloud seeding have applications that extend far beyond weather modification, according to Space42.
'Advanced Earth Observation and AI technologies open new frontiers in climate risk management,' Marpu said. 'Our combination of SAR satellite imagery, HAPS monitoring, and AI-powered analytics supports a range of climate-related applications. Beyond optimizing cloud seeding, these systems help forecast floods, monitor drought conditions, and model long-term environmental changes such as sea-level rise.'
Space42 is also expanding into marine conservation through partnerships with government entities and other organizations.
'One example is our partnership with the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi, OceanX, and M42 to support marine biodiversity and fisheries conservation,' said Marpu. 'By deploying Digital Twins and GIQ, we help map ocean ecosystems, monitor environmental conditions, and provide a clearer picture of marine life, supporting informed conservation strategies and sustainable marine resource planning.'
While the technologies supporting cloud seeding operations have advanced significantly, measuring the precise impact of these interventions remains challenging.
Research from the National Center of Meteorology has suggested that cloud seeding can increase rainfall by 15–30 percent in a clean atmosphere, and by up to 14 percent in a dusty atmosphere. However, isolating the effects of cloud seeding from natural rainfall variability requires sophisticated modeling and long-term data collection.
Space42's systems aim to address this challenge by providing more comprehensive monitoring before, during, and after cloud seeding operations.
'Our system models real-time environmental conditions, pinpoints the most effective cloud seeding windows, and tracks water distribution outcomes, ensuring each intervention contributes meaningfully to national water security,' Marpu said.
