The website is under construction. It contains general information about a patented technology aimed at local and global influence on Earth's climate through the controlled formation of cloud cover and precipitation.
The problem of global warming is discussed so widely that there is no point in repeating well-known theses. Nevertheless, in addition to the global problem of warming, which this invention is intended to solve, we would like to emphasize one of the underestimated problems—desertification of lands.
Climate warming changes the nature of rainfall. Warm air holds more moisture, so precipitation becomes more intense but less frequent. Instead of prolonged, drizzling rains that are well absorbed by the soil, short, intense downpours prevail. During such downpours, most of the water does not have time to penetrate the soil and flows over the surface into rivers and then into the ocean.
Massive extraction of groundwater for irrigation and urban water supply lowers the groundwater level. Intensive soil cultivation destroys its structure, compacts the upper layers, and reduces its ability to retain moisture. Modern agricultural practices lead to a loss of organic matter in the soil, which is critical for water retention.
Urbanization creates waterproof surfaces that accelerate surface runoff.
Soil desiccation starts a vicious cycle: dry soil reflects less solar radiation and heats up more, which increases evaporation and local warming. Evapotranspiration from plants decreases, which reduces precipitation in the region.
To put it simply, even if the volume of evaporation remains the same, the amount of precipitation on such lands decreases, and the proportion of water that such land can absorb also decreases.
The solution lies in managing rainfall, namely, using water bodies as the only available source of fresh water for targeted evaporation of large masses, lifting them to the required (wind map) height, and transferring them to a target zone. The provision of precipitation is not discussed in this document; however, solutions for managing this process exist, both well-known and promising.
The system is a covering located on the surface of a body of water. The body of water, its size, and physical characteristics can vary. For the description below and throughout the text, an example of a platform located in the Gulf of Oman will be used.
The platform is a 1x1 kilometer covering, consisting of a central covering made of connected non-linear honeycomb plates (see below), and boom barriers located around the perimeter with additional equipment.
These are plates, several centimeters thick (e.g., 5 cm), consisting of honeycomb cells of any shape—triangular, square, or polygonal—that are open at the top and bottom. The cells form numerous narrow, vertical channels designed to suppress natural water convection inside. The plate is oriented, meaning it has a bow and stern that coincide with the platform’s bow and stern. This means that the lower and upper sections of the cells are deflected towards the stern relative to the center of each cell. This bend can be a break in the center of the plate or a smooth curve; the angle of deflection of the top and bottom may differ. The thickness of the cell walls can be anything; in this case, we will assume it is 0.3 mm. A second option is tilted cells, closed at the bottom with polyethylene or expanded polyethylene, with holes for slow water passage. The size of the holes is chosen so that in calm weather on a wave, there is a slow flow of water in the cells without mixing.
They can be any structures aimed at protecting the mat from a direct wave impact, as they absorb such an impact. They can carry wind or solar generators, batteries, control systems, and rudder planes. They are a frame around the perimeter of the mat, possibly with separate structures in the middle.
It is assumed that the mat itself is made of a material with low positive buoyancy, for example, recycled polyethylene or polypropylene treated for high resistance to UV (likely soot). The honeycomb structure, filled with unsealed water (hydro-damping), provides it with high horizontal strength. In addition, it easily bends on waves both on its own and due to the free connection of the plates. Such a structure, especially with boom protection, allows it to easily withstand waves of up to 5 meters or more, especially since closer to the center of the platform the waves become less noticeable.
A mat of this size is extremely difficult to control with engines and towing. It can be disassembled and transported over a long distance, but a different method is used for maneuvers in the water area. The platform moves forward due to air sail-like properties, where wind from any direction enters the tilted channels and presses on the front wall, which is inclined towards the water at an acute angle, and slides off the back wall, which is at an obtuse angle, creating a pressure difference (high at the entrance, low at the exit). The wind pressure creates a stable thrust towards the bow. The tilted channels provide a stable direction of movement, effectively using wind energy for the controlled movement of the platform. A disadvantage of the system is the inability to move in reverse. Rudder surfaces with a total area of 1000-2000 square meters, when deployed perpendicular to the movement, ensure the drift stops. In a running mode with a moderate wind, the speed can reach 4 knots. However, it must be understood that this is a fundamentally new type of floating craft, and there are no reliable models of its movement yet.
The mat of non-linear honeycomb lying on the water surface has a black color (albedo 0.05). The overwhelming majority of the radiation enters the cells and is absorbed by the water and walls. Since the walls are not facing up but sideways, they reflect and radiate heat not into the atmosphere, but onto the water in the cells and other walls. In addition, dense steam above the platform itself absorbs IR radiation. The bend of the cell (knee or bottom) suggests that sunlight cannot pass through it, and almost all the radiation energy will be converted into heat and used for heating and evaporating the water. This also means complete shading of the water under the platform and that the entire flow of sunlight is spent with minimal loss on heating and evaporating the 5-cm layer of water.
To lift air high into the atmosphere, warm and humid air works most effectively. Moreover, humidity is more important than temperature, since condensation during ascent releases latent heat, which accelerates the process. Our goal is to create a thermal, a column or rather a bubble of warm air that is released periodically. Having the ability to regulate the parameters, we will strive for an air humidity closer to 100%, and a temperature 10-15 degrees higher than the surrounding air. How is this achieved?
All the energy of the walls below the water level is spent on evaporation; due to the insignificant movement of air near the surface, there is always saturated steam there. Above the water level (+-3 mm), the walls are hotter, and their energy is spent on heating the air and steam, which, expanding, rises from the cell. Thus, by submerging or lifting the mat out of the water, we obtain steam-saturated air with the necessary parameters.
The engineering task of creating such tubes (selecting their length and diameter) is to create conditions where thermal convection at the walls dominates, while salty water sinks in the center, and in the process of sinking, it transfers temperature to the fresher water rising along the sides through heat recovery. It is assumed that such a system removes all salt; however, if this does not happen, the salt begins to crystallize on the cell walls, increasing the weight of the mat, which causes it to sink, and the salt is washed off. In addition, salt is washed off at night due to the wave oscillation of the water level. Artificial submersion of the mat is also possible.
It is assumed that the salinity of the water in the cells and under them will often exceed 100 per mille during the day, and drop to the norm of 35 per mille at night. This will make the mat an uncomfortable place for any form of life. In addition, there is virtually no sunlight under the mat, which makes biofouling unlikely. However, the real situation requires long-term field experiments.
The energy that previously heated a 20-40 meter water column will be directed to heating and evaporating a 5 cm layer. This will cause a powerful updraft of warm and humid air, probably in a periodic (hours) mode. Even without artificial support, such events cause rain to form. The platform is a trigger that initiates this process, and it has enough energy for it due to the accumulation of solar energy and active evaporation.
This artificially induced event will break through the inversion layers, forming a dense cloud tower up to 10-12 km high at maximum, which will shift the regional circulation of air masses. As a result, anomalous weather will set in over the platform and adjacent areas—the temperature of the ground air will decrease by 2-3°C, and precipitation will increase downwind (the spot of precipitation and cloud shading depends on the number of platforms involved). The key task is to trigger a meso-event, to ensure the conditions are such that all or a significant part of the warm and humid air in the water area uses the inversion layer breakthrough and begins to rise and is carried by the prevailing winds at an altitude of 3-10 km in the desired direction. This procedure can be repeated the next day or every other day. This is rather inevitable, because installing and removing the platform is much more difficult than keeping it at the desired point.
As a result of the constant use of this technology, we get not a heavy downpour once every two weeks, but a daily light rain. The question of predicting the range of the platform, and supporting rain clouds along the way, cannot be disclosed in this document, since it is a task of iterative modeling on a planetary scale.
A patch of water will form under the platform that does not receive sunlight and is characterized by increased salinity. This water sinks, eroding the thermocline. This has a positive effect on biodiversity. In addition, warm water from the sides of the platform will flow under it. It is planned to enclose the platform with mesh barriers that will naturally collect plastic waste. New platforms can be made from it.
A significant release of warm and humid air, especially in the direction of arid territories, will form a cloud cover. Around 50 such cloud ribbons, working 6 hours a day, are capable of lowering the Earth's average temperature by 1 degree. Target territories—for example, the Sahara, Arabia, Atacama, Gobi, and Australia. Cloud ribbons of 1000 km are real, with this method of launching, they can pass over mountains and only require a large grouping of platforms over a large area. Actually, the launch height is regulated by the platform area. From the point of view of energy conservation, the system does not violate any laws, since we are simply discharging heated air layers in an unnatural way, which reduces the relative humidity at the surface.
The placement of such platforms in the ocean can dissipate accumulated thermal energy and prevent hurricanes, since the removal of humid air over an area of tens of square kilometers will accelerate water evaporation, and therefore lower the temperature of the ocean.
This technology (method and system) is protected by a patent application. For questions about the implementation of the technology, please contact raingunpro@gmail.com.