More than 90 scientists from around the world have written an open letter recommending that research be done on the potential of increasing solar radiation modification (SRM) — the reflection of sunlight away from Earth’s atmosphere, sometimes referred to as “solar geoengineering” — in order to slow planetary warming and lessen climate impacts. The scientists […]
By Daisy Dunne Spraying aerosols high in the stratosphere could dampen global warming over land, but may not prevent the oceans from heating up, new research says. The findings suggest that this type of “solar geoengineering“—a set of techniques that aim to tackle global warming by reflecting sunlight back into space—may not necessarily stem sea […]
By Jeff Turrentine Science fiction doesn’t always stay fictional. Space exploration, robots and self-driving cars are just a few of the modern-day wonders that once existed only as plot devices or fantastical theories. Our capacity for turning science-fictional notions into the stuff of everyday life has grown with each new generation of scientists and microchips, […]
By Jan Minx, Dr. Sabine Fuss and Gregory Nemet Despite the ambitious long-term climate goals of the Paris agreement, there remains a distinct lack of success at ushering in immediate and sustained reductions in global CO2 emissions. This cognitive dissonance has seen the topic of “negative emissions“—also known as “carbon dioxide removal”—move into the limelight […]
By Robert McSweeney Solar geoengineering, or “solar radiation management” (SRM), is perhaps the most controversial of the different ways of limiting human-caused climate change. A commonly voiced objection to the technique is the risk of “termination shock”—the rapid rebounding of global temperatures if SRM is deployed and then suddenly stopped. But a new research article, […]
By Daisy Dunne Reducing the impacts of human-caused climate change through the use of bioenergy with carbon capture and storage—better known as BECCS—could have major consequences for wildlife, forests and water resources, a new study shows. The large-scale conversion of existing land to BECCS plantations could cause global forest cover to fall by as much […]
By Tim Radford Geoengineering—the untested technofix that would permit the continued use of fossil fuels—could create more problems than it could solve. By masking sunlight with injections of sulphate aerosols in the stratosphere, nations could perhaps suppress some of the devastating hurricanes and typhoons that in a rapidly warming world threaten northern hemisphere cities. But […]
By Steve Horn Geoengineering, hailed in some circles as a potential techno-fix to the climate change crisis, has taken a step closer to going mainstream. The U.S. House Committee on Science, Space and Technology held a rare joint subcommittee hearing on Nov. 8, only the second ever congressional hearing of its kind on the topic […]
By Jane A. Flegal and Andrew Maynard Hollywood’s latest disaster flick, “Geostorm,” is premised on the idea that humans have figured out how to control the earth’s climate. A powerful satellite-based technology allows users to fine-tune the weather, overcoming the ravages of climate change. Everyone, everywhere can quite literally “have a nice day,” until—spoiler alert!—things […]