As most of southern China endured a severe and sometimes fatal drought this summer, cloud seeding became the most promising way to cool the country's hottest summer since 1951.

By Aug 9, the central government had allocated more than 199 million yuan ($32 million) to induce rain, particularly in Southwest and Central China, according to the Ministry of Finance.

From July 1 to 31, drought-hit regions, including Hunan and Zhejiang provinces, fired a total of 15,987 cloud-seeding artillery shells and 727 rockets, and six airplanes flew more than 10 hours of cloud-seeding missions, according to the China Meteorological Administration's Weather Modification Center.