Geoengineering 101

Some of the recent conversations here have touched on the idea of geoengineering, i.e., taking pro-active steps to mitigate the greenhouse gas problem more aggressively than simply cutting emissions. This is a hot topic, if I may use the pun, in many of the current conferences on sustainability – albeit a fiercely controversial one.

Rightfully, the concept of shooting particles into the mesosphere (the layer above the stratosphere) to shield the Earth from incident sunlight that is melting the polar icecaps is quite contentious, yet I personally recommend that everyone have at least a surface level of understanding of the topic. To that end, here’s one of the magnificent “Ted Talks” by scientist David Keith, who, in 16 minutes, presents the basics of the subject in a quite accessible way.