Data · dataset · 2026
A numerical evaluation of the impact of operational ground-based glaciogenic cloud seeding on precipitation over the Wind River Range, Wyoming
Listed in National Center for Atmospheric Research
This study evaluates an operational glaciogenic cloud-seeding program using ground-based generators of silver iodide (AgI), with a total of 190 seeded storms over 10 cold seasons, using the Weather Research and Forecasting Weather Modification (WRF-WxMod) scheme at 900-m grid spacing.
Description
This study examines both the quantitative change in precipitation and the ambient and cloud conditions impacting seeding efficacy. An ensemble approach is used, with differ-ing model boundary conditions, ice nucleation physics, concentrations of cloud condensation nuclei, and boundary layer schemes.
This is intended to provide an envelope of uncertainty of natural clouds and seeding impacts. The simulations are validated against radiosonde, snow gauge, and microwave radiometer observations, and the seeding impact is inferred from simulations with/without AgI seeding. The seeding-induced precipitation enhancement ("yield") varies greatly be-tween storms.
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A small portion of the cases produces the majority of the yield. Overall, the precipitation in the target area (the Wind River Range in Wyoming) increased by 1.10% 6 0.13% in the 10 years of operational seeding. This rather low fractional increase is related to the frequent seeding at unsuitable times, primarily because of low-level flow blocking.
The flow and cloud structure for select cases are examined to provide better insight into the variability of yield. Cases with un-blocked surface flow and abundant cloud liquid water tend to be the most productive. The technique presented here can be readily adapted to evaluate the seeding impact of other long-term glaciogenic seeding operations and to improve their operational efficiency.
Links
Get the data
- Publisher page n2t.org/ark:/85065/d7r78k64 ↗
documentation · download · from data ucar edu
Where it is published
- data.ucar.edu /dataset/a-numerical-evaluation-of-the-impact-of-operational-gr… ↗
National Center for Atmospheric Research dataset page
landing page · from data ucar edu
Catalogue records · 1
- CKAN API data.ucar.edu/api/3/action/package_show?id=4f6d6425-93dc-42d9-9c2a-9f8895abe… ↗
metadata API · from data ucar edu
Topics
- From keywords
- Earth & Environmental Science · Ocean & Atmospheric Science
- Inferred from text
- Physical geography and environmental geoscience 71%
Provenance · 1 source records, 8 field assertions
| Source | Key | Last seen | Raw |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Center for Atmospheric Research | 4f6d6425-93dc-42d9-9c2a-9f8895abefab | 12 d ago | JSON v1 |
| Field | Assertion | Extractor | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| concepts[field].anzsrc:group:3709 | enrichment · data ucar edu | taxonomy-embedding@1.1.0 | title+keywords+description (71%) |
| concepts[field].local:field:earth-environmental | mapping · data ucar edu | connector:data_ucar_edu@1.0.0 | |
| concepts[field].local:field:ocean-atmospheric | mapping · data ucar edu | connector:data_ucar_edu@1.0.0 | |
| created_date | source · data ucar edu | connector:data_ucar_edu@1.0.0 | |
| description | source · data ucar edu | connector:data_ucar_edu@1.0.0 | /notes |
| publication_date | source · data ucar edu | connector:data_ucar_edu@1.0.0 | |
| title | source · data ucar edu | connector:data_ucar_edu@1.0.0 | /title |
| updated_date | source · data ucar edu | connector:data_ucar_edu@1.0.0 |