CHINA'S air force is gearing up for its biggest-ever assault on the clouds to ensure blue skies above Beijing for the 60th anniversary of the communist revolution.

Eighteen cloud-seeding aircraft and 48 fog-dispersal vehicles are on standby to intercept rain clouds that threaten to cast a shadow over the festivities, which will include the biggest display of military power in at least 10 years. The weather modification could exceed the huge cloud-busting operation for the opening ceremony of the Olympic games last year, when more than 1,100 rain-dispersal rockets were fired into the sky.

“It is the first time in Chinese history that artificial weather modification on such a large scale has been attempted,” said Cui Lianqing, a meteorologist, speaking to the Global Times newspaper.

Meteorologists will coordinate the mission using satellite data. The Beijing Weather Modification Office will supplement the campaign with rockets and planes that load clouds with silver iodide or liquid nitrogen — dry ice — to induce precipitation above reservoirs and rivers.

China has the world's most extensive rain creation infrastructure, employing about 50,000 people nationwide. Their job is usually to alleviate droughts in the arid north of the country. For National Day they would have to encourage rain to fall from clouds before they reached Beijing.

The National Day events mark the founding of the People's Republic of China on Oct 1, 1949. The Communist Party wants to use the occasion to showcase its achievements since Mao Zedong took power. The centre of the city will be closed for a huge parade, musical performance and show of military power.

— The Guardian, London