BEIJING SNOW: NOT A BIT NATURAL?

Written by: Bob Metcalfe

This topic is to meteorologists as cloning is to chemists and doctors: weather modification. In this case, cloud seeding.

Chinese meteorologists are taking credit for an unusually early snowfall in the nation's capital after they made efforts to inject special chemicals into the clouds to help create precipitation. At this point, it was cold enough for it to snow.

This was the earliest snowfall that part of the country has seen in over 10 years. Meteorologists are celebrating however, because the country is suffering from drought conditions. Months ago, before the olympics, meteorologists there seeded clouds to form rain that would cleanse the air and make it more bearable for athletes and fans.

But the underlying question here is: Should we toy with Mother Nature's work? Sure, they may be easing the drought, but what if someone was killed in say a car accident because of the poor driving conditions brought about by the snow? What if it causes major traffic problems, delays to work, and slows local businesses down? It's something that we will likely hear more and more about in the coming years, and I'm sure it'll be a hot button issue across the world.