The King and the Clouds, the Story of the Royal Rainmaking Project

Drought has always prevailed on the plateau of Isan, a nickname given by the Thais to the northeastern region of Thailand, where nearly half of the population are farmers.

Dependent on the rains to maintain their crops, farmers traditionally gathered at the beginning of the rainy season to launch handmade Bang Fai rockets into the sky to ask the weather god to release the monsoon on the land.

According to folklore, the higher and louder the rockets are, the better.

The deity will probably be happier with the offering and allow abundant rain for the season's harvest.

On November 14, 1955, His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej the Great traversed the parched region of Isan during a royal visit.

The monarch, then 28 years old, observed the effects of the lack of water in the region, which led to low agricultural yields and, consequently, the population suffered from chronic poverty and malnutrition.

King Rama IX in Thai villages.

When the young king looked up at the sky in the hope of finding a solution, he noticed that it was cloudy, but there was no precipitation.

Like "every cloud has a silver lining", literally, King Bhumibol found one by looking at the clouds - an idea on how to attract cloud droplets to agricultural land.

*The English proverb « every cloud has a silver lining » or in French: « every cloud has a bright side » is used to convey the idea that, no matter how dire a situation is, there is always a bright side.

The idea of artificial rain came to me in 1955, when I visited Isan in November.

There were clouds, but the drought persisted.

I had two ideas in mind.

The first was to build retention dams, and the second was to figure out how to bring water from the clouds.

Then I remembered that I had already heard about rainmaking.

Later, I spoke about it to Mom Rajawongse Debariddhi (an agricultural engineering expert) who confirmed that it was possible to create artificial rain.

Source: His Majesty King Bhumibol, interview with officials from the Royal Development Project Board, March 17, 1986.

The Royal Rainmaking Project in Thailand.

Having shown a keen interest in science from a young age, the king gained knowledge in technological research from the time he enrolled in the Faculty of Science at the University of Lausanne.

After 14 years of research on meteorology and weather modification, the first artificial rain experiment was attempted on July 1, 1969.

It was a remarkable success.

After the fleet of planes distributed dry ice flakes above the clouds, it started raining within 15 minutes.

This operation marked the dawn of what is now recognized by the Thai people as the royal rainmaking project, "The Royal Rainmaking Project".

Since then, the project has undergone a series of transformations to perfect the artificial rainmaking process.

His Majesty King Bhumibol recognized that a sufficient amount of moisture is crucial to the success of the rainmaking process.

This is why a new chemical formula was invented to maximize the humidity level for different types of clouds.

The current rainmaking technique now involves three processes.

First, "stirring", to activate cloud formation using salt and other chemicals to accumulate moisture.

Then, "fattening", to stimulate the accumulation of droplets in the cloud by dispersing calcium chloride, and finally "attack", to trigger rain from heavy clouds by adding a mixture of salt and urea.

The project was then concretized with the establishment of the Royal Rainmaking and Agricultural Aviation Bureau in 1992, under the supervision of the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives.

This technique for making rain is unique to Thailand.

In 2001, King Bhumibol received recognition from the Royal Rainmaking Project of the EUREKA organization 'for an invention that is beneficial to the world'.

In 2003, King Bhumibol obtained a patent from the European Patent Office for weather modification.

Since the invention attracted international attention, many countries have sought to cooperate with Thailand to apply this know-how to their own drought problems.

Jordan, for example, obtained permission to use the rainmaking technique in 2009, thanks to a memorandum of understanding for training and technology transfer.

Among the other countries that have requested cooperation are Mongolia, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Australia and the Philippines.

In Thailand, November 14 is now celebrated as the "Royal Rain Father's Day" to commemorate the day that inspired this invaluable initiative that has benefited many countries around the world.

Even 50 years after the birth of the Royal Rainmaking Project, this initiative is still very active today.

There is no need to rely on the weather gods, when citizens can submit a request for rain when needed, and the rain is granted.

The project allows Thai farmers to harvest without interruption, and to fill hydroelectric dams to help meet the growing demand for electricity.

In 2013, the Bureau of Royal Rainmaking and Agricultural Aviation was modernized to become the Department of Royal Rainmaking and Agricultural Aviation due to the importance of its mission and expanded responsibilities.

In 2019, the Department conducted 1,673 rainmaking operations across the country.

Nearly 89% of flights were successful, producing rainfall over 63 million hectares of forests, agricultural areas, and reservoirs.

The torrential rains have increased water reserves by 2,595 million cubic meters.

However, the demand for artificial rain is expected to increase due to air pollution problems and the effects of global warming, and the ministry is currently exploring the possibility of using rockets to help disperse the rain substance above the clouds.

Today, under the leadership of His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn, the legacy of the Royal Rainmaking Project continues to live.

Following in his father's footsteps, King Vajiralongkorn has also launched various irrigation projects to combat drought, such as the construction of six reservoirs in the western province of Ratchaburi, and the development of canal systems, retention dams and dikes to help farmers in southern Thailand.

It is one of the many testaments to the vision, continued dedication, perseverance, and ingenuity of the monarchs of the Chakri dynasty who watch over the Thai people and country.

See also:

Self-sufficiency economy in Thailand, a fundamental legacy

Self-sufficiency economy in Thailand, the gift of Rama IX

Source: nationthailand.com