Project Cumulus
Project Cumulus was a 1950s UK government initiative to investigate weather manipulation, in particular through cloud seeding experiments. Known jokingly internally as Operation Witch Doctor,[1] the project was operational between 1949 and 1952.
Motivation
The military were controlling the weather for several reasons, as detailed in the minutes of an Air Ministry meeting held on 3 November 1953.[1] They included:
- "bogging down enemy movement";
- "incrementing the water flow in rivers and streams to hinder or stop enemy crossings";
- clearing fog from airfields.
Lynmouth disaster
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On 16 August 1952 a severe flood occurred in the town of Lynmouth in north Devon. Nine inches (229 millimetres) of rain fell within twenty-four hours:[2] "Ninety million tonnes of water swept down the narrow valley into Lynmouth" and the East Lyn River rose rapidly and burst its banks.[3] Thirty-five people died and many buildings and bridges were seriously damaged. According to the BBC, "North Devon experienced 250 times the normal August rainfall in 1952."[3]
A conspiracy theory has circulated that the flood was caused by secret cloud seeding experiments conducted by the Royal Air Force.[1][4] The theory has been dismissed as "preposterous" by experts.[5]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Vidal, John and Helen Weinstein, RAF rainmakers 'caused 1952 flood', The Guardian, 30 August 2001, retrieved 21 July 2007.
- ↑ 1952: Flood devastates Devon village, BBC
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Rain-making link to killer floods, BBC, 30 August 2001, retrieved 21 July 2007.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ The day they made it rain, Philip Eden, WeatherOnline
External links
- The 1952 Flood Disaster in Context, Exmoor National Park Authority
- "Weather", Royal Meteorological Society, July 1952.
