US startup develops drones to modify clouds, boost PV plant output by up to 30%

US startup Meteoric Technologies is developing a cloud-engineering system that uses fleets of autonomous drones to penetrate clouds and modify their optical properties without chemicals. The company initially plans to partially clear low- and mid-level clouds over utility-scale PV plants, with its models suggesting the technology could increase annual generation by 10% to 30%.

Cloud seeding is a weather-modification technique that involves introducing particles or other agents into clouds to alter the behavior of water droplets or ice crystals. It is typically used to encourage precipitation, reduce hail formation or disperse fog. Meteoric’s approach differs from conventional cloud seeding because it aims to modify cloud properties without introducing chemical agents.

According to the company, the process reduces the clouds’ reflectivity, allowing more sunlight to reach the PV modules below. Howeber, it has not publicly disclosed details of the mechanism used to modify the droplets.

The technology, backed by Silicon Valley accelerator Y Combinator, initially targets clouds at altitudes of around 1 km to 5 km, with Meteoric planning to deploy fleets of dozens or hundreds of drones to act directly on the water droplets within clouds.

Meteoric also claims the system would require no additional energy infrastructure and could recover some generation losses caused by cloud cover. According to the company’s cloud-loss model, low- and mid-level clouds can reduce incident solar radiation by 73% to 82% while passing over a PV plant.

The company estimates that the resulting increase in electricity generation could be worth between $5,000 and $28,000 (€4,300 and €24,100) per MW in different regions of the US power grid.

Meteoric says it has also built a prototype that dissipated 13% of an artificial cloud in cloud-chamber tests. Furthermore, it has developed a model to estimate generation losses at individual US solar plants caused by the types of cloud cover its technology is designed to address.

The company aims to reduce the cost of accessing clouds by using electric drones. It says conventional aircraft used for cloud-modification operations can cost more than $2,000 (€1,700) per hour to operate, compared with an estimated $30 to $60 (€25.80 to €52) per hour for the electric drones envisioned for its system.

The project also relies on advances in AI-based weather forecasting, with Meteoric saying improved forecasts could help predict cloud formation and movement and optimize the deployment of drone fleets over individual PV installations.

The startup plans to conduct its first large-scale cloud-clearing operation in 2027. The company says the trial will test whether its technology can modify clouds in a controlled and reproducible manner at a scale beyond laboratory experiments.

In the longer term, Meteoric plans to apply the technology to more intense weather systems. The company ultimately aims to develop drone fleets and control systems capable of intervening in clouds associated with severe storms and hurricanes in an attempt to reduce their intensity. It plans its first experimental storm-related operation for late 2028.

Meteoric is led by Mete Karslioglu and Eric Nilsson, two engineers who studied at the University of Cambridge. Karslioglu has conducted research into modifying cloud reflectivity using seawater spray systems, while Nilsson has developed water-droplet control systems and technologies for removing droplets from optical surfaces.