- Rainmaker and Atmo are partnering to combine AI forecasting and drone-based cloud seeding for more targeted weather modification.
- Scientists emphasize that cloud seeding only modestly increases precipitation and cannot cause major floods.
- The partnership aims to improve measurement and effectiveness of cloud seeding, especially in regions like West Texas.
Cloud-seeding startup Rainmaker is joining forces with Atmo, an AI-powered meteorology company, to enhance the science of weather modification.
The partnership will see Atmo’s deep learning models used to identify clouds most likely to respond to seeding, while Rainmaker’s drone-based technology will deliver targeted precipitation boosts.
Atmo, known for its advanced weather forecasting, will now offer Rainmaker’s cloud-seeding services to its own customers.
In return, Rainmaker will provide data from its proprietary radar systems, helping both companies measure the true impact of their interventions.
The collaboration comes as Rainmaker faces scrutiny from conspiracy theorists who claim its Texas operations contributed to recent floods—a claim dismissed by atmospheric scientists.
“Somebody is looking for somebody to blame,” said Bob Rauber, professor at the University of Illinois, noting that cloud seeding can only modestly increase rainfall.
For example, a well-documented Idaho project added 186 million gallons of precipitation—tiny compared to the trillions in a major storm.
Cloud seeding is widely used in the Western U.S. to augment snowpack and water reservoirs, with West Texas programs reporting about a 15% annual boost in precipitation.
However, experts say the region’s clouds are less responsive than those in mountainous areas, and rainstorms are already primed to deliver most of their moisture.
Edited by Annette George
