Can Cloud Seeding Help Tackle Delhi’s Air Pollution?

31st October 2025

Cloud seeding process. Image: Yang H. Ku/C&EN/Shutterstock

CAS students, mentored by faculty members, have prepared an exhaustive report (over three days during a hackathon) on 'cloud seeding.' The report critically examines whether cloud-seeding is a viable option for reducing air pollution, taking into account various scientific factors such as atmospheric stability, thermodynamic conditions, aerosol-cloud interaction, and washout and recovery rate.
Link to the report

Prepared by CAS PhD students (in alphabetical order): Aasif Ahmad Wagay, Aiswarya Ramachandran, Alice Jeeva P J, Anirudh K M, Aparna Aparajita, Ardra D, Chaithra S T, Charudatt J Puri, Debjit Paul, Dhishana P R, Emili Singha Roy, Gobinda Manna, Joswin P Joy, Pankaj Lal Sahu, Payel Kundu, Rupanjan Banerjee, Sanya Narbar, Saran Rajendran, Shreya Srivastava, Sojol Das, Subhadeep Ghosh, Tanerao Singh Sankhla, and Vasu Singh.

Mentors (in alphabetical order): Prof. Krishna Mirle Achutarao, Prof. Sagnik Dey, Prof. Sajeev Philip, Prof. Sandeep Sukumaran, and Prof. Shahzad Gani.

The report has been cited by various news agencies such as The Hindu, The Indian Express, The Times of India, Hindustan Times, The Tribune, and more.

The Centre for Atmospheric Sciences is a centre of excellence promoting interdisciplinary research in air-sea interaction, numerical modeling of atmosphere and ocean, monsoon studies, climate variability, and air pollution to understand its physical and social consequences. During the last 40 years, the Centre has grown in response to the national needs as well as rapid advances in atmospheric and oceanic sciences

Total Visitors :21.5K

Contact

:

Centre for Atmospheric Sciences, Block VI, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas, New Delhi-110 016, India.

:hodcas@admin.iitd.ac.in
:+91 11 2659-1301/6029
©Copyright 2026, CAS, IIT DelhiLast Updated: 10-19-2026