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Unseasonal UAE rainfall in part due to cloud seeding

Scattered rain is expected today, while tomorrow there could be more frequent and heavier rainfall with most of it expected over Abu Dhabi

Weather experts in the UAE say the recent unseasonal rainfall in the country has been in part due to cloud seeding conducted by the National Centre of Meteorology and Seismology (NCMS) and has warned of more rain to come. But they said these actions were not the only reason for the recent unsettled conditions, UAE daily The National reported citing the weather forecaster.

The NCMS has been seeding clouds since April 21 to enhance rainfall.

"We are only enhancing the rainfall," a NCMS scientist, who declined to be named was quoted as saying.

WEATHER FORECAST

Scattered rain is expected today, while tomorrow there could be more frequent and heavier rainfall with most of it expected over Abu Dhabi, UAE daily The National added, citing a scientist with the National Centre of Meteorology and Seismology (NCMS).

"The situation is normal, but the duration and the frequency [of the rainy spell] is not," the daily quoted the NCMS scientist.

The changes in weather started on April 21 and intensified over the weekend, reaching a peak on Saturday.

ABU DHABI RAINFALL

The highest rainfall recorded in the past week was 126.4 millimetres on Wednesday in Al Quaa in the Eastern part of Abu Dhabi, near Al Ain, National reported

Yesterday, Bida Said in Abu Dhabi recorded 22.5mm of rain, the report said.

Rainfall levels are higher than average. Between 2003 and 2010, the average rainfall in April in Abu Dhabi was 11.4mm, nationally that figure was 8.16mm.

"The weather conditions are unusual but not unheard of. What meteorologists know about the UAE is that rainfall varies significantly from one year to another," the daily quoted Ahmed Al Sajwani, UAE representative of ArabiaWeather.com, a company that provides weather products for the Arab world as saying.

Abu Dhabi saw a record rainfall in 2003, with 189.8mm in Razeen.