article_snippet.sent: Swiss Professor Jean-Pierre Wolf is working on yet another impressive addition to the list of applications for laser: using focused laser beams to affect the weather.
article_snippet.sent: How does laser actually affect the weather?
article_snippet.sent: That way, rainfall can be triggered to "empty" the atmosphere and increase the potential of dry weather later on:
article_snippet.sent: The technology is still in The technology infancy then, but once The technology's perfected, The technology could help us modulate the weather in areas of high contrast, such as California or Chile, where flooding and droughts occur in extreme vicinity.
article_snippet.sent: Through lasers, those effects could be smoothed to have less rain in flooding-prone areas and more rain in drought-prone areas: "You can transport the water to a different location," Professor Wolf said.
article_snippet.sent: Controlling lightning, or facilitating its discharge in a desired location, would help reduce the costs associated with lightning damage -- they run into the billions of dollars each year, adding to thousands of people injured or killed by lightning strikes.
article_snippet.sent: Affecting the weather could also turn out to be one of our best bets at limiting the impact of climate change.
article_snippet.sent: Professor Wolf reckons lasers could be used to "repair" the weather, reducing the occurrence of hurricanes, thunderstorms, flooding, and drought.
highlights_snippet.sent: Swiss Professor Jean-Pierre Wolf is pioneering the use of lasers to affect the weather .
  
highlights_snippet.sent: Swiss Professor Jean-Pierre Wolf suggests lasers could also be used to limit the impact of climate change .