Desert Research Institute

DRI weather modification research produced the Nevada State Cloud Seeding Program in the 1960s.

This initiative, funded by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, seeks to augment snowfall in mountainous regions of Nevada to increase snowpack and water supply.

DRI researchers use ground stations and aircraft to release microscopic silver iodide particles into winter clouds, stimulating the formation of ice crystals that develop to snow.

They have developed a Lagrangian Random Particle Dispersion Model that has been applied to complex coastal and inland environments.

They plan on studying the pollution to determine if it is from local sources or if particles from discarded plastic products have been transported long distances through the atmosphere by wind, rain and falling snow.