Questions raised over role of cloud seeding in deadly Texas floods
A map shared around on social media was genuine, but the method is generally not able to produce major storms
CLAIM
A map showing cloud seeding in Texas has sparked speculations that weather modification was the cause for the deadly flooding in Texas’ Kerr County on July 4.
BACKGROUND
Torrential downpours caused the Guadalupe River to rapidly rise in South Texas, triggering catastrophic flash floods that swept through campsites and other locations in the early hours of Friday. So far, 129 people have been confirmed killed in the disaster, including dozens of children, and at least 160 remain missing, according to the latest update.
The worst of the flooding was centred around Kerrville and Kerr County with at least 27 children and counsellors killed at Camp Mystic — a Christian all-girls summer camp west of the city.
On July 5, an image described as showing a “map of rain-enhancement projects in Texas” along with a document indicating the company Rainmaker is currently carrying out rain-enhancement activities in South Texas, began to be shared on X. The particular post seen above was shared over 5,700 times by July 10 and had received over 1.5 million views, according to X’s metrics.
The map and document were also widely shared on other platforms such as with this post on Facebook that was shared more than 5,000 times.
Weather modification or “cloud seeding” is a method by which precipitation is increased. According to the North America Weather Modification Council, it works by introducing ice-forming agents such as silver iodide or dry ice or water-attracting agents such as salt into clouds to produce additional droplets or ice and speed up precipitation. According to the organisation, it has been used since the 1940s with current projects in Texas among other states in the U.S.
METHOD
The map that was being shared was indeed taken from the website of the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, showing the South Texas rain enhancement project taking place immediately south of Kerr County. The TDLR says the weather modification project in the area has been ongoing since 1997.
Rainmaker CEO Augustus Doricko also responded to the document being shared about his company’s cloud seeding activities in the area on July 5, denying any responsibility for the floods. Doricko responded to a post by retired U.S. Army General Mike Flynn and former Trump security advisor who has over 2.1 million followers on X. He confirmed seeding activities in the area on July 2 but said they could not have precipitated the storm given the life-span of clouds and the fact that seeding is not done at night time.
He wrote: “The last seeding mission prior to the July 4th event was during the early afternoon of July 2nd, when a brief cloud seeding mission was flown over the eastern portions of south-central Texas, and two clouds were seeded. These clouds persisted for about two hours after seeding before dissipating between 3:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. CDT. Natural clouds typically have lifespans of 30 minutes to a few hours at most, with even the most persistent storm systems rarely maintaining the same cloud structure for more than 12-18 hours. The clouds that were seeded on July 2nd dissipated over 24 hours prior to the developing storm complex that would produce the flooding rainfall.”
He added that Rainmaker suspended operations when a senior meteorologist recorded “unusually high moisture content prior to the event’s arrival.” He said this was a day before the National Weather Service issued a flood warning.
While we could not independently verify when Rainmaker ceased cloud seeding, a fact-sheet by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) was published in 2024 to dispel the myth that cloud seeding is able to produce major storms. The document was published in response to hurricanes Helene and Milton. It said that cloud seeing was done by private companies to “generate snow in specific locations, or in the desert southwest to replenish water reservoirs in summer.” It said: “The method has been used for decades in an effort to increase stored water in snowpack that melts in the spring to maintain adequate water supply.”
The NOAA said no technology exists to produce extreme weather events such as hurricanes.
Another fact-sheet by the North Dakota Atmospheric Resource Board also says that the time from seeding to precipitation typically is about 30 minutes. In 2022, the U.S. Department of Agriculture published a press release saying the Agricultural Research Service was developing a new technique to generate more rain than other methods but also said the time from seeding to precipitation only takes 15 to 20 minutes.
RATING
Both the map and the cloud seeding project activity report by Rainmaker are genuine. However, they are in all likelihood falsely connected to the flooding event around Kerrville, in Texas, on July 4.
SOURCES
CNN (2025). July 9, 2025: News on the deadly Texas floods. [online] [Accessed 10 Jul. 2025].
Maag, C., Moya, M.J., Soumya Karlamangla, Mokam, B. and Hippensteel, C. (2025). Texans Offer a Hand and Open Their Hearts as Flood Death Toll Grows. [online] Nytimes.com. [Accessed 14 Jul. 2025].
NAWMC. (n.d.). Understanding warm season cloud seeding. [online] [Accessed 10 Jul. 2025].
North Dakota Atmospheric Resource Board (n.d.) Common Questions and Answers about Cloud Seeding. [Accessed 10 Jul. 2025].
Texas.gov. (2025). Map of Rain-Enhancement Projects in Texas. [online] [Accessed 10 Jul. 2025].
U.S. Department of Agriculture. (2022). Seeding the Skies, Harvesting Rain : USDA ARS. [online] [Accessed 10 Jul. 2025].
Facebook (2025). TEXAS Rain ENHANCEMENT “Weather Modification” Projects [online] [Accessed 10 Jul. 2025].
X (2025). TEXAS Rain ENHANCEMENT “Weather Modification” Projects [online] [Accessed 10 Jul. 2025].
X (2025). The natural disaster in the Texan Hill Country is a tragedy. My prayers are with Texas… [online] [Accessed 10 Jul. 2025].
X (2025). Did Rainmaker conduct any operations that could have impacted the floods? No… [online] [Accessed 10 Jul. 2025].
X (2025). A senior meteorologist observed an unusually high moisture content… [online] [Accessed 10 Jul. 2025].