§ Mr. de Freitasasked the Under-Secretary of State for Air whether the Physical Sub-Committee of the Meteorological Research Committee has yet considered the problem of weather modification; and what conclusions it reached.
Mr. WardThis question was considered at a recent meeting of the Sub-Committee. They concluded that there was no reliable evidence that rainfall had ever been artificially increased on an economically useful scale and that there was no scientific basis for believing that any method yet proposed would be successful in achieving such a result.
They considered, however, that so much was at stake that scientifically conducted research should be intensified, particularly into the large-scale diffusion of airborne particles, the analyses of natural nuclei concentrations and the design of the large-scale field trials which would be necessary to test the effectiveness of the proposed methods of operation.
The Meteorological Office is putting in hand the studies recommended by the Sub-Committee.