PROJECT ICARUS - SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
News: Express Explained - Project Icarus
What's in the news?
● Recently,
the US government has asked for further research on the controversial idea of solar geo-engineering (similar to one
seen in science fiction work such as Neal Stephenson’s Novel ‘Terminal Shock’).
Key takeaways:
● It
involves shooting reflective particles
into the stratosphere to deflect the rays of the Sun and help bring down
territorial temperature.
● However,
last time in 1991, the eruption of Mount Pinatubo (Philippines) brought about a
‘volcanic winter’, with global temperature cooling by 0.4 degrees Celsius,
leading to the issue of food scarcity.
What is Solar Geo-engineering?
● Solar
geoengineering involves spraying substances into the atmosphere that form
reflective aerosols and bounce sunlight back into space.
● This
could stop global temperatures from increasing, but temperatures locally or
regionally might continue to increase over the following few years, new
research shows.
● The
wider consequences of solar geoengineering are still poorly understood, making
it a potentially risky approach to tackle
global warming.