WMOD00313

• Title: Cloud Physics Studies in Utah During 1978
• Date: 9/1/1978
• State: UT
• Weather Modification - Doc Type: Report

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CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION

This is the first annual interim progress report to the Bureau of
Reclamation, Office of Atmospheric Water Resources Management. from the
University of Wyoming. Department of Atmospheric Science. under Contract
7-07-83-VOOOl (UTAH). The Department of Atmospheric Science operated King
Air. N2UW. in the Utah Weather Modification Program (UTAH) from 8 March
1978 to 7 April 1978. This report contains the results of the analysis
effort under that contract.
The Division of Water Resources of the State of Utah conducted an
operational snow augmentation project during the 1977-78 winter season.
The seeding operation for the Utah Weather Modification Program was con-
ducted under contract by North American Weather Consultants. The seed-
ing was primarily by means of acetone ground gener.ators whlch released
~ 6 gm hr-1 of Agl. NAWC installed and operated over 100 ground genera-
tors in central Utah. The generators were primarily located on either
side of the north-south oriented Wasatch Range and around all sides of
the east-west oriented Uinta Range in northeastern Utah. During a typical
storm, up to 60 ground generators were operated at the same time. In
addition. NAWC had three or four twin engine turbo-charged aircraft equip-
ped with wing-tip flares, droppab1e flares and acetone-buring wing-tipped
mounted Agl generators. From our limited observations, it appeared that
the seeding aircraft were used during the early stages of storms before
the ground generator plumes were thought to have diffused upward into the
clouds. The seeding aircraft were also used on occasion when vigorous
convective clouds were present.
The Office of Atmospheric Water Resources Management of the Bureau
of Reclamation participated in the Utah Weather Modification Program by
providing funds for additional support studies such as the radar and
rawinsondes near Roosevelt, Utah to support the Uinta seeding operations.
and a radar and rawinsondes near Milford. Utah to support the Wasatch
seeding operations. In addition, the Bureau provided the funds for the
Department of Atmospheric Science of the University of Wyoming to operate
its instrumented King Air (KIA) aircraft for one month in this project.