Cyprus Mail 9 January 2021 - by Evie Andreou
Russian companies have been approaching the government trying to promote their cloud seeding systems to increase the chances of rain, it emerged on Friday.
This piece of information was given by head of the meteorological office, Kleanthis Nicolaides, who, while discussing the current lack of rain during an interview on CyBC radio, said Russian companies were trying to promote their cloud seeding technology to enhance the possibilities of rainfall in Cyprus.
According to Nicolaides, a similar method was used in 1971 when the then government had introduced a ‘rainfall reinforcement plan’ with President Makarios buying the services of companies that would ‘bomb the clouds’ to make them rain.
“Such methods are debatable today, it is not certain that spraying the clouds would cause rain, or the opposite,” Nicolaides said.
He said that the programme was interrupted due to the Turkish invasion, high cost and uncertain results.
“I remember this as a child, it was an issue widely covered in the news,” Christiana, a Nicosia resident, told the Cyprus Mail. She said it was something that had created quite an impression on her.
She remembers that one of the sessions was said to have failed, since, one cloud, after being ‘bombed’ it moved over the sea.
Nicolaides said that even today companies offering such technology cannot guarantee clouds will ultimately produce rain.
As regards the weather, Nicolaides said no rain is expected until mid-January.
“There seems to be no change until January 13 to 14 when rain is expected,” he said.
He said Cyprus currently is affected by a high-pressure zone, adding that the higher the pressure the more difficult it is for the weather pattern to change.
It has not rained since December 14, he said, while Cyprus is currently experiencing April temperatures. “We have exceeded the seasonal average,” he said.
On Friday morning it was 18C in Nicosia, 19C in Parekklisia, 21C at the Paphos airport, 23 in the Akamas, and in Prodromos it was 14C.
Temperatures are expected to be on the same levels until Tuesday when a slight rise is expected.
