Online-Vortrag von Frank N. Keutsch (Paulson School of Engineering and Atmospheric Science, Harvard University Cambridge, MA, USA): Stratospheric Solar Geoengineering - Taking the Edge off Climate Change?

20.04.2021 17:30

Despite the progress made at the Paris climate talks with respect to reducing emissions of green-house gases it is possible ...

Despite the progress made at the Paris climate talks with respect to reducing emissions of greenhouse gases it is possible that the rate of environmental change may result in extensive negative impacts for humans and natural ecosystems. Clearly, emissions cuts are essential to managing climate risk and reducing climate change. However, given the potential consequences of a high rate of environmental change, it is important to investigate complementary approaches. For example, geoengineering methods aimed at altering Earth's radiation budget may offer a fast-acting way of moderating the rate of climate change. However, such geoengineering approaches entail a number of new risks, and cannot replace reducing CO2 emissions/levels. I will discuss different geoengineering methods, focusing on new approaches to stratospheric solar radiation management, highlighting technical capabilities and risk. I will discuss physical and chemical properties of the ideal stratospheric solar geoengineering material and potential candidates, such as diamond and calcium carbonate, which may greatly reduce stratospheric ozone loss and changes in stratospheric dynamics. I will also discuss questions surrounding the potential im-plementation of such approaches.

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