Already home to some of the world's most ambitious construction and engineering projects, including the Burj Khalifa, The World, and Dubai Observation Tower, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is reportedly exploring the possibility of constructing a manmade mountain as part of an attempt to boost rainfall in the area.
According to local business magazine Arabian Business, the basic idea is that making a large mountain would force air to rise and encourage the creation of clouds. Cloud seeding could then be employed to increase rain in the area. Just how big an area would benefit from making the mountain isn't clear.
Experts from the United States University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) have teamed up with the UAE's own National Center of Meteorology & Seismology (NCMS) to conduct the research.
The scientists are carrying out a modeling study to decide the location the manmade mountain would be best placed, in addition to its height, shape, and width.
The project is still in its early stages and seems too expensive and outlandish for it to leave the drawing board. That said, you could make the same argument for several of the UAE's most memorable large-scale architectural projects, so who knows?
Source: Arabian Business
