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UAV performs rainmaking in Xinjiang

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) rainmaking operation has been carried out from Aug. 29 - Sep. 03 in northwest China's Xinjiang region.

The operation performed by the Weather Modification Center of the China Meteorological Administration is set in the mountainous Bayinbuluke Grassland in Bayingolin Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture, involving a large drone that carries cloud structure detection devices and a medium-sized drone.

The large drone, a Twin-tailed Scorpion A, is 10.5 meters in length, and 3.1 meters in height with a wingspan of 20.2 meters.

The drone can carry up to 24 silver iodide rods and 200 smoke grenades, which are used to seed clouds. It has an endurance of 40 hours, a service ceiling of 10,000 meters and a range of 8,000 kilometers when fully loaded.

"This mission features two drones' three-dimensional operation in high and low altitude, and their operation capacity has apparently improved. In the meantime, the large drone is equipped with advanced cloud and precipitation detection systems, enabling it to operate more precisely in response to conditions and timing. We have also relied on the high-precision monitoring network on the ground, actively coordinated encrypted quick scanning of the Bayinbuluke mountainous areas by FY-4 geostationary satellites, resulting in a space-air-ground integrated monitoring network to better support the operation," said Cai Miao, deputy director of the Technical Research Office of the Weather Modification Center of the China Meteorological Administration.

Large drones enable the region to carry out artificial precipitation more precisely and efficiently, providing more sufficient water resources for the local ecosystem, said Peng Jun, deputy director of the meteorological bureau of Bayingolin Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture.

"We have introduced such large drones into our base mainly to increase the inflow water volume to our rivers, so forage grass can grow better in the key periods of their growth to provide more quality feed for our cattle and sheep. In the future, this will strongly support and guarantee the high-quality socioeconomic development in our Bayingolin prefecture," he said.

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