What's causing the strange rain and floods in Dubai?

Dubai, known for its climate and scorching temperatures, is experiencing a rare weather phenomenon as heavy rainfall is flooding parts of the city.

According to meteorological records from Dubai International Airport, the rainfall started late on Monday, filling the desert sands and roads of Dubai with approximately 20 millimetres (0.79 inches) of rain. The storms increased around 9 a.m. local time on Tuesday and continued throughout the day, flooding the city with more rain and hail.

The downpour triggered chaos, disrupting air travel and flooding streets throughout the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The state-operated WAM news agency labelled the rain as "a historic weather event," surpassing "anything documented since the start of data collection in 1949."

Here’s what’s causing the flood in Dubai

1. Lack of proper drainage

Rainfall is an anomaly in the UAE since it is an arid country located on the Arabian Peninsula. Rainfall only occurs sporadically during the cooler winter months. As a result, many roads and other areas lack proper drainage due to the infrequency of rainfall, when heavy rainfall then falls, the lack of drainage leads to flood.

2. Cloud seeding

Experts believe that human-induced climate change likely exacerbated the severity of the rain in Oman and Dubai. Bloomberg reports that heavy rains were partially the result of cloud-seeding efforts.

Cloud seeding is a weather modification technique that alters the amount or type of precipitation, mitigates hail, or disperses fog, typically aiming to increase rain or snow for its own sake or prevent subsequent precipitation.

The UAE uses a lot of energy to make fresh water from seawater. Since they don't have much natural water underground, they also try to make it rain with cloud seeding.

In neighbouring Oman, at least 19 fatalities occurred due to heavy rains in recent days, according to a statement from the country's National Committee for Emergency Management. This included the tragic death of 10 schoolchildren swept away in a car with an adult.

Schools and offices across the UAE have been closed down indefinitely, some homes have always been flooded with water. Authorities in Dubai dispatched tanker trucks to pump away excess water from streets and highways.