China will make it rain over an area 1.7 times the size of France

China is creating rain in an area 1.7 times the size of France.

The massive Asian country will spend 1.15 million yuan ($168 million) to modify weather in its parched northwestern provinces, in one of the country's biggest such programmes, the South China Morning Post reports.

The China Meteorological Administration expects rainfall and snow to be increased over 960,000 sq km -- 10 percent of the country's territory -- if cloud seeding is successful.

The process will take three years, and China will buy four new planes, upgrade eight existing aircraft, develop nearly 900 rocket launch systems and connect 1,856 devices to digital control systems.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

China's northwestern provinces -- Gansu, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Ningxia and Xinjiang -- is home to the country's largest deserts, experiencing little rain and is typically hot and dry during the summer and severely cold in winter.

To perform cloud seeding, aircraft and rockets penetrate clouds with catalysts such as dry ice or silver iodide, to induce or increase rainfall.

China has been relying on cloud seeding increasingly, to clear up its atmosphere for major events, or clearing up its perennial northern smog.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

In 2008, China launched over 1,100 rockets containing silver iodide into Beijing's skies before the Olympics opening ceremony to disperse clouds and keep the Olympics rain-free.

China has hopes that cloud-seeding can alleviate drought, and spent $150 million in a single cloud-seeding program in 2011. The U.S., in comparison reportedly spends about $15 million on cloud seeding per year.

According to the South China Morning Post, artificial rainfall enhancement has increased precipitation by 50 billion cubic meters from 2006 to 2016 -- roughly one and a half times the size of Lake Mead.

While cloud seeding is still regarded as relatively safe, some studies have cautioned that there is not enough long-term information on what happens to the cloud seeding chemicals once they disperse.