As the rainy season approaches, Beijing's municipal authorities are increasing the number of rain-inducing canons. Today, journalists went to Yanqing Hail Prevention and Rain Inducing Station and found workers busy with rain-inducing tasks.

Mr Li of the Rain Inducing Station said that from the end of May until July is Beijing's rainy season. To mitigate water shortages, during this period rain will be artifically induced when necessary depending on weather conditions.

The Rain Inducing Station is equipped with double-barreled canons that shoot 30 cm shells with a diameter of 4 cm. The shells contain silver iodide, explosives and gunpowder. On overcast days or when there are a lot of clouds, they usually use 60 to 70 shells to induce rain.

LINK:
The Mirror: This morning canons fired to induce rain (in Chinese)
The image is a photo of the Mirror's print edition; click to enlarge.