On mechanism of hail cloud modification by seeding

The hail cloud modification is carried out by means of the cloud seeding with AgI particles of submicron sizes, in order to create nuclei competing with the natural ones for supercooled liquid droplet water, or in order to accelerate precipitation generation. However, scientific research confirmed a primary role of giant and supergiant particles in generation of nuclei of convective precipitation and hail. Such particles occur also at high levels (5 km and more). As the cloud and precipitation particles grow mainly through coagulation, one can hardly expect a high success from the cloud seeding with AgI submicron particles for hail suppression. In the hail process modification, the Ag particles settle down not at the nuclei but in the hailstone layers. So, AgI is spent not for additional hail nuclei creation, but for intensification of coagulation growth of natural cloud and precipitation particles. This can represent one of the main mechanisms for cloud modification.