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Making rain with lasers

Shooting lasers into the air can trigger the formation of water droplets, a technique that could be used to help stimulate rainfall.

Previous attempts to induce rain have focused on “cloud seeding” – a technique that involves scattering small particles of silver iodide into the air – but the use of lasers is a more environmentally friendly alternative.

While the research is promising, the rain-making technique is only in its infancy and much work is needed before lasers will be able to create widespread rainfall on demand.

Read more at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology

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