The Distribution of Silver in Precipitation from Two Seeded Alberta Hailstorms

Abstract

Samples of rain and small hail have been analyzed for their silver content. The samples were collected during both seeded and unseeded storms in the project area of the 1968 Alberta Hail Studies Program. The natural background concentration of silver was determined as 5 × 10−12 gm ml−1. The precipitation from two storms, each seeded with 240 gm of AgI, contained silver up to 14 times this background value. The circulation times for the silver iodide through the storms were determined. In one case, it was around 40 min; in the other two cases, it was around 70 min. This type of observation could be valuable in optimization of seeding techniques for hail suppression. Abstract Samples of rain and small hail have been analyzed for their silver content. The samples were collected during both seeded and unseeded storms in the project area of the 1968 Alberta Hail Studies Program. The natural background concentration of silver was determined as 5 × 10−12 gm ml−1. The precipitation from two storms, each seeded with 240 gm of AgI, contained silver up to 14 times this background value. The circulation times for the silver iodide through the storms were determined. In one case, it was around 40 min; in the other two cases, it was around 70 min. This type of observation could be valuable in optimization of seeding techniques for hail suppression.