Fact Check: Sorry Mr Amitabh Bachchan, Nasa doesn't have a rain cloud generator
Bachchan fell for a video it claims that Nasa has developed a rain cloud generator for instant rain
New Delhi: Like everybody else in India, veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan too is eagerly waiting for rains to calm down the sweltering heat. But longing for a magical solution for rains, he fell for a video which claims that Nasa has developed a rain cloud generator for instant shower. As expected, the video he shared spread like wildfire. And it turns out that the video is old and misleading.
... can we get one in India .. I mean right now .. RIGHT NOW .. PLEASE !!?????? https://t.co/pTRI8r4VsK
— Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) June 26, 2019
India Today's Anti-Fake News War Room (AFWA) has found that the video has been created by combining clips from two different rocket engine tests by Nasa. It certainly is not a machine to generate rain clouds.
The archived version of the tweet can be seen here.
In the viral video, the first few seconds show a giant machine continuously emitting something that looks like clouds or white coloured smoke. Later in the video, an anchor appears and talks about clouds emitted by the engine. This 59-second video ends with 'rains' from these clouds.
AFWA has found that the machine which generated artificial clouds in the viral video is actually a space shuttle engine tested by Nasa in Mississippi, United States.
In fact, the viral video has been created by combining clips from two different rocket engine tests by Nasa.
The first few seconds of the video show the test-firing of an RS-25 engine and the rest is from a BBC television series called "Speed", aired in 2001. Hosted by English broadcaster Jeremy Clarkson, the footage shows test-firing of an RS-68.
Both engines were tested at Nasa's Stennis Space Center in Mississippi at different times. But this is not the first time that this video is going viral with the same claim.
The Verge did a fact check of this video last year when it was being widely shared as a machine to make artificial clouds.
The clipping of the BBC show "Speed" from which the clip has been picked up can be seen here.
Some users have referred to a fact check article by Forbes in the comments section of Bachchan's tweet.
WHAT ARE RS-25 AND RS-68 ENGINES?
The RS-25 engine is a liquid-fuel cryogenic rocket engine that was used on Nasa's space shuttle. It will be used to power space shuttle's successor, the Space Launch System (SLS).
The Aerojet Rocketdyne RS-68 is a liquid-fuel rocket engine and is the world's most powerful hydrogen-fuelled rocket engine. It was used in the Delta IV family of rockets. None of these engines can generate rain cloud.
CAN THIS MACHINE REALLY BRING RAINS?
Yes, because what you see coming out like clouds are actually a huge amount of water vapour. When the vapour get colder in a similar environment, rains could occur in nearby areas as happened in this case. But this is kind of a side effect of the engine test.
IS IT POSSIBLE TO CREATE RAINS ARTIFICIALLY?
It is possible to get rains by a process called cloud-seeding.
It is a weather modification technique that is done by spraying chemicals such as dry ice on rain-bearing clouds. The process has been partially successful but is quite expensive.
Cloud-seeding has been tried in many countries including India. In 2017, the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology conducted a cloud-seeding programme named "Varshadhare" in Karnataka.
The study showed that cloud-seeding can bring rains but only if weather conditions support.
However, so far, no country has been able to develop a machine which can make artificial clouds.
Courtesy: www.indiatoday.in
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‘I’ll get impeached if...’: Donald Trump warns Republicans ahead of 2026 midterms
Washington: US President Donald Trump has warned Republican lawmakers that a defeat in the 2026 midterm elections could put his presidency at risk, saying Democrats would move quickly to impeach him if they regain control of Congress.
According to a report published by News18, addressing a retreat of House Republican lawmakers in Washington, Trump urged his party to treat the midterm polls as a political red line, arguing that holding on to Congress is crucial to blocking any impeachment effort.
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“You gotta win the midterms ’cause, if we don’t win the midterms, it’s just gonna be- I mean, they’ll find a reason to impeach me," Trump said.
“I’ll get impeached," he said.
While a loss in the midterms would not automatically remove Trump from office, it could significantly weaken the Republican Party’s grip on Congress and complicate the passage of his legislative agenda and policy reforms. A Democratic Party majority in the House would also give the opposition the authority to initiate impeachment proceedings.
Midterm elections in the United States are held halfway through a president’s four-year term and take place on Election Day, the Tuesday following the first Monday in November. During the midterms, all 435 seats in the United States House of Representatives are up for election, along with 33 or 34 of the 100 seats in the United States Senate, depending on the cycle.
In addition to congressional races, 36 gubernatorial elections will be held. While most US states elect governors to four-year terms, Vermont and New Hampshire hold gubernatorial elections every two years, including during midterms.
Midterm elections also include races for state legislatures and municipal offices, such as mayors and local councils, as well as ballot initiatives and referendums, making the midterms a broad test of political power at the federal, state and local levels.
