New Mexico lawmakers advanced a cloud-seeding pilot program in 2024, but it stalled in the Senate, sparking renewed interest in the technology.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – New Mexico lawmakers advanced a cloud-seeding pilot program in 2024, but it stalled in the Senate, sparking renewed interest in the technology.
Chief Meteorologist Eddie Garcia explains that cloud seeding is not about weather control but enhancing existing clouds to produce more precipitation.
Cloud seeding uses particles like silver iodide to help super-cooled water droplets freeze, leading to more precipitation.
This is not weather control. It can’t make rain on demand. It can’t steer storms, and it definitely can’t create clouds out of clear skies.
Cloud seeding has been shown to increase precipitation by 5–15%, which can mean millions of gallons of additional water downstream. That’s why it’s used—especially in places that rely on snowpack for drinking water, like in New Mexico.
The technology dates back to the 1940s and is used in parts of the western U.S., Australia, and other countries to enhance natural processes.