I think it’s a combination of hubris and desperation. Hubris because it could still go very wrong and serve us a frozen extinction instead of a boiling one. Desperation because those who acknowledge what’s happening know that something probably needs to be done to not only stop but reverse this but the corporations might be more likely to burn it all down protecting their interests than cooperate.
The “easy” solutions will likely lead to war and might not even help anything at this point. The promising technologies still need to be scaled up (also in a way that makes sure we don’t overshoot the cooling targets or remove so much CO2 that plants die out).
The more I think of it, the more I like this desperate idea. If it does work too well, we can always just send more rockets to move whatever it is out of the way. Which we should have built and ready to go shortly after the blocker is deployed. Preferably sitting in orbit to minimize the chances of it screwing up if desperately needed.
Hmm sunlight is also a carbon reducer since it drives photosynthesis. But desperate times…
All I can think of is the last episode of the show Dinosaurs. This is the wax fruit factory and the bunch beetles all over again, except with us as the stars of our own show.
God damn was that a downer ending for a lighthearted sitcom. That kids watched. I didn’t see the final episode until I was an adult, but I bet a bunch of kids were traumatized when it first aired.
Imagine if, instead of the four of them ending in jail at the end of Seinfeld, they died in a nuclear holocaust. Or if How I Met Your Mother ended with zombies eating the whole gang while we watched them scream. I’m guessing that was the level of trauma for kids watching the finale of Dinosaurs.
It was a total downer. As an adult, I don’t watch that episode anymore. It had some enjoyable content, but I can’t start it because of how bleak it gets. Otherwise, that show is probably among my top 50.
The main aerosols proposed for SRM also cause ozone depletion and acid rain. There is some level of control as to where the bad consequences and up and which regions get more extreme weather.
Anyone want to take a guess as to which countries won’t end up with the consequences?
I mean this is just saying the US is open to researching the possibility. They aren’t even committing to researching it.
“However, the report also clarifies that no decision has been made to “establish a comprehensive research programme focused on solar radiation modification.””
It’s a very prudent decision to study it. We can determine and quantify the risks this way.
taxing the rich properly would (blasphem alert) help redistribute wealth among workers and decrease inflation, and also make the world colder, since we dont have to work as much. but i guess we would be stripped from our daily dose of uv light soon. yea who needs vitamin b3 anyway ?
American arrogance at its best.
The EU is also thinking about the same exact measures:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-06-26/eu-looks-into-blocking-out-the-sun-as-climate-efforts-falter
This is human hubris just like how the Holocene extinction is human hubris, we don’t need to pin things on any single national entity.
I think it’s a combination of hubris and desperation. Hubris because it could still go very wrong and serve us a frozen extinction instead of a boiling one. Desperation because those who acknowledge what’s happening know that something probably needs to be done to not only stop but reverse this but the corporations might be more likely to burn it all down protecting their interests than cooperate.
The “easy” solutions will likely lead to war and might not even help anything at this point. The promising technologies still need to be scaled up (also in a way that makes sure we don’t overshoot the cooling targets or remove so much CO2 that plants die out).
The more I think of it, the more I like this desperate idea. If it does work too well, we can always just send more rockets to move whatever it is out of the way. Which we should have built and ready to go shortly after the blocker is deployed. Preferably sitting in orbit to minimize the chances of it screwing up if desperately needed.
Hmm sunlight is also a carbon reducer since it drives photosynthesis. But desperate times…
All I can think of is the last episode of the show Dinosaurs. This is the wax fruit factory and the bunch beetles all over again, except with us as the stars of our own show.
God damn was that a downer ending for a lighthearted sitcom. That kids watched. I didn’t see the final episode until I was an adult, but I bet a bunch of kids were traumatized when it first aired.
Imagine if, instead of the four of them ending in jail at the end of Seinfeld, they died in a nuclear holocaust. Or if How I Met Your Mother ended with zombies eating the whole gang while we watched them scream. I’m guessing that was the level of trauma for kids watching the finale of Dinosaurs.
It was a total downer. As an adult, I don’t watch that episode anymore. It had some enjoyable content, but I can’t start it because of how bleak it gets. Otherwise, that show is probably among my top 50.
The main aerosols proposed for SRM also cause ozone depletion and acid rain. There is some level of control as to where the bad consequences and up and which regions get more extreme weather.
Anyone want to take a guess as to which countries won’t end up with the consequences?
I mean this is just saying the US is open to researching the possibility. They aren’t even committing to researching it.
“However, the report also clarifies that no decision has been made to “establish a comprehensive research programme focused on solar radiation modification.””
It’s a very prudent decision to study it. We can determine and quantify the risks this way.
taxing the rich properly would (blasphem alert) help redistribute wealth among workers and decrease inflation, and also make the world colder, since we dont have to work as much. but i guess we would be stripped from our daily dose of uv light soon. yea who needs vitamin b3 anyway ?