WMOD00305 ‎(2)‎

• Title: Demonstrating Water Augmentation by Cloud Seeding in the Colorado River Basin
• Date: 5/1/1974
• Weather Modification - Doc Type: Report

Springs, Colorado, and studies of the hydrological
effects in the Basin by Colorado State University began
in 1964. winter seeding research sponsored by the
National Science Foundation, particularly at Climax,
Colorado, also had streamflow augmentation as the
eventual practical goal. One of the nation's largest
weather modification research undertakings, the Colorado
River Pilot Project in the San Juan Mountains, began
randomized cloud seeding for a 1,30q square mile target
area in December 1970. Final evaluations and reports
for this project and its associated ecological and
avalanche studies will be completed in 1976.

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The pilot Project is a randomized test and for experimental
purposes, designed to conduct seeding only in a narrow
"window" bounded by precipitation forecasts, cloud
temperatures, and wind directions. At the end of four
winter seasons, 119 experimental days within the "window,"
have been accrued, of which 59 were seeded and 60 were not
seeded. The statistical design called for 160 test
days to be randomly divided about 50-50. A fifth
winter season, 1974-1975 is planned to collect the
required additional research data.

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