Rockets and chemical can bring rain and snow at will
China claims an 11-hour snowfall on Beijing on Sunday was man-made because farmland in the dry north of China was suffering from to drought, the Guardian reports.
China's meteorologists fired 186 explosive rockets loaded with chemicals to "seed" clouds and encourage snow to fall. "We won't miss any opportunity of artificial precipitation since Beijing is suffering from a lingering drought," Zhang Qiang, head of the Beijing Weather Modification Office, told state media.
Officials said the blue skies for Beijing's parade to celebrate 60 years of communism last month were a result of the 18 cloud-seeding jets and 432 explosive rockets sent to empty the sky of rain beforehand. Last year, more than 1,000 rockets were fired to ensure a dry night the Olympic opening ceremony.
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