UAE honours three scientists with $1.5m grant each for rain enhancement research

The UAE Research Program for Rain Enhancement Science (UAEREP), managed by the National Center of Meteorology (NCM), on Wednesday announced the awardees of its Sixth Cycle grant during a press conference held at NCM, in Abu Dhabi.

Each recipient will receive a grant of up to $1.5 million (Dhs5.511 million), distributed over three years, with a maximum annual amount of $550,000.

The awardees for the Sixth Cycle are Dr Dixon Michael, Principal Radar Meteorologist and Software Engineer, Echo Science Works, Boulder, Colorado, USA, for his research proposal titled "Advancing Cloud Seeding Science with Dual-Polarization Radar Signatures and AI."

Professor Linda Zou, Adjunct Professor, Institute for Sustainable Industries and Liveable Cities, Victoria University, Australia, for her research proposal titled "AI-assisted Development and Optimization of Glaciogenic Cloud Seeding Materials.

Dr Oliver Branch, Senior Scientist and Head Coordinator of Land Atmosphere Feedback Observatory, Institute of Physics and Meteorology, University of Hohenheim, Germany, for his research proposal titled "Rainfall Enhancement through Modification of Land Cover and Land Form (RAINLAND)."

Dr Abdulla Al Mandous, President of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) and Director General of the National Center of Meteorology, said: "Under the guidance of His Highness Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister, and Chairman of the Presidential Court, UAEREP has established itself as a global hub for scientific collaboration, attracting leading scientists and research institutions from around the world. This reflects a fundamental approach of the broader UAE - we practice what we preach, investing with intelligence in practical and sustainable innovation. Since its inception, the National Center of Meteorology has been a key enabler of UAEREP's success by providing access to state-of-the-art meteorological infrastructure, advanced research facilities, and operational expertise, thereby creating an environment that fosters innovation and scientific excellence."

For her part, Alya Al Mazrouei, Director of UAEREP and Director of Research and Weather Enhancement Department at NCM, said: "We congratulate the awardees of the Sixth Cycle, whose proposals demonstrate the highest standards of scientific innovation and practical application. The awardees will benefit from UAEREP's accumulated knowledge, technical resources, and extensive network of global collaborations to achieve their project objectives. This will allow them to develop practical, science-based solutions that deliver tangible outcomes, contributing to global efforts in water security and climate resilience."

Dr Dixon Michael's project builds on existing approaches in the UAE to further advance the evaluation of cloud seeding impacts, where assessments have traditionally relied on reflectivity-based storm tracking. His research will upgrade LROSE/TITAN to measure microphysical pathways and assess impact using transparent, uncertainty-aware methods, while building local capacity at NCM to sustain these systems.

Professor Linda Zou's project will develop advanced nanocomposite materials as ice nucleation agents and employ AI-powered analytics to optimize their performance, supported by data from a Portable Ice Nucleation Experiment (PINE) cloud chamber. The PINE chamber will be deployed at NCM in the final phase of the project along with a hands-on training workshop.

Dr Oliver Branch's project, RAINLAND, will demonstrate through a theory-observation-simulation approach that triggering moist convection is possible via land-cover and land-topography modifications. It aims to predict optimal designs and locations for land-form structures to enhance rainfall in the UAE.

Since its launch during the 7th International Rain Enhancement Forum (IREF) held in Abu Dhabi in January 2025, the Sixth Cycle attracted 140 submissions, from which 16 innovative pre-proposals were selected following a rigorous pre-proposal review in May 2025.