Yet the debate over solar geoengineering is likely to persist, as it enjoys the backing of wealthy individuals such as Gates, and the support of key scientific institutions, including the powerful U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, which is urging the U.S. government to set up a federal research program to advance the technologies to the tune of up to $200 million. This is why, SCoPEx says, most research has focused on an aerosol chemical already found in the stratosphere: sulfuric acid, which is a pollutant. "Decision-makers and the public they serve need balanced information about the effectiveness and risks of geoengineering," he wrote in that editorial. 1.5K. A Harvard experiment named SCoPEx is supported in part by these initiatives. Prominent campaigner Greta Thunberg came out in support of the indigenous peoples and against solar geoengineering. UK researchers experiment with a solar geoengineering system called (Photo by: VW Pics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images), Santa Clara, California 27 September, 2014 Global, March Against Chemtrails and Geoengineering, YOGYAKARTA, INDONESIA - JANUARY 07: Lava runs down, from Mount Merapi as the volcanic activity increases on January 7, 2021 in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The moon partially covers the sun in a cloudy sky during a solar eclipse on 2 July 2018 in Quito, Ecuador. The name of the project is SCoPEx, or, Stratospheric Controlled Perturbation Experiment . Bill Gates Is Thinking About Dimming the Sun In late 2022, the startup Make Sunsets announced that it was injecting small amounts of aerosols into the stratosphere as an experiment in solar. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. The claim that solar geoengineering is an effort to "block out the sun" is inaccurate; the technology is a riff on a naturally occurring process. Such statements describe popularly held concerns about the concept of geoengineering as a whole. These are ideal for residential or commercial rooftops, but they're compatible with a ground-mount as well. Some people say you shouldn't even work on the insurance policy because it might make you lazy, that you'll keep eating because you know heart surgery will be there to save you. Brain Organoids Are Alive, But Are They Conscious? For now, research into the field is fairly limited. SCoPEx will take a small step in its early research this June near the town of Kiruna, Sweden, where the Swedish Space Corporation has agreed to help launch a balloon carrying scientific equipment 12 miles (20 km) high. Aerosols are the gaseous clouds. Bill Gates hatches 'horribly stupid' plan to block out the Sun - just According to the project's website: SCoPEx will make quantitative measurements of aspects of the aerosol microphysics and atmospheric chemistry that are currently highly uncertain in the simulations. UK researchers experiment with a solar geoengineering system called SATAN These claims have. Her favorite topics include nuclear energy, cosmology, math of everyday things, and the philosophy of it all. Official govt docs expose Michelle Obamas 14 year history as a man., "Woody Harrelsons 60 seconds in the middle of his monologue was cut out of the edits released after the show., BREAKING Trump preps Marines to stop presidential coup.. Next, they say, the technologies could be used by governments or corporations to prevent work on other, less risky methods to combat climate change, such as reducing the use of fossil fuels. Proponents of so-called solar geoengineering, such as tech billionaire Bill Gates, say techniques intended to block a portion of the solar radiation reaching the planet ought to be. The Stratospheric Controlled Perturbation Experiment (SCoPEx) will spray a special calcium dust into the sky in order to reflect sunlight back into space. Now, a recycled claim says Gates aims go even higher literally. Many anti-Gates stories and memes suggest Gates philanthropic efforts' stem from things he "wants" to happen. The data gathered during this experiment would, among other things, help inform computer models that look into the potential risks of actual geoengineering. Fact check: Bill Gates is not trying to 'block the sun's rays' - USA TODAY Scientists say this lack of concrete information and consensus is a critical failure that must be corrected with new studies. Gates' financial involvement with SCoPEx has been documented since November 2018. Suggests a January traffic accident involving lab monkeys was responsible for spreading monkeypox to humans. It's perhaps equally crazy to keep ignoring it. Keith wrote in a blog post last December there are "no easy answers" to climate change and noted that a "technology's risks depend on how it's used. With everyone from investors to indigenous groups involved in the process, SCoPEx will never get off the ground without a lot of diplomacy. This will likely postpone the platform launch until 2022, the committee said. Geoengineering and Bill Gates blocking out the sun. "The laws governing Agenda 2030 land development allows the government to seize polluted lands and move their residents to smart cities., Bill Gates hatches 'horribly stupid' plan to block out the Sun - just like Mr Burns, Fund for Innovative Climate and Energy Research, New Report Says U.S. Should Cautiously Pursue Solar Geoengineering Research to Better Understand Options for Responding to Climate Change Risks, Stratospheric controlled perturbation experiment: a small-scale experiment to improve understanding of the risks of solar geoengineering, No, Bill Gates did not outline 2018 plan to depopulate the planet, No, the Gates Foundation isnt pushing microchips with all medical procedures, Bill Gates Will Have to Wait a While to Block the Sun, Bill Gates Is Thinking About Dimming the Sun, Claims that Bill Gates is going to block the sun lack context, Solar Geoengineering Should be Investigated, Scientists Say. Gates and other private donors are supporting Harvard University's Solar Geoengineering Research Program, which had planned to launch a new study based in Sweden in June researching the. Planned Harvard balloon test in Sweden stirs solar geoengineering In a 2010 Ted Talk, Gates argued that if society ends up in a position where global warming is bad enough that geoengineering needs to be taken seriously, it should already know and understand the process and its potential consequences. Freezing temperatures in 1815 led to failed crops in near-famine conditions. He's also known for wanting to save us from ourselves. But if we dont understand how solar geoengineering will affect the world, by the time we need it as an option in our climate playbook, it will be too late. Claims that Bill Gates is going to 'block the sun' lack context (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.). SCoPEx is partly funded through FICER and partly funded by Harvard's Solar Geoengineering Research Program, which itself is funded by a number of foundations and other private donors, including Gates. Concerned groups want a clearer understanding of consequences before the launch. Carbon capture, where emissions are taken and sequestered beneath Earths surface, is another major form of geoengineering. SCoPEx is partially funded by Harvard's own Solar Geoengineering Research Program (SGRP), which lists Gates as one of its many philanthropic donors. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Bill Gates Wants to Dim the Sun | What Is Solar Geoengineering? But this claim, like other reports, misrepresents the nature of the project. Billionaire philanthropist and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates is no stranger to conspiracy theories and speculation about the projects he funds. There is a line of research on what's called geoengineering, which are various techniques that would delay the heating to buy us 20 or 30 years to get our act together. In fact, it would be less material than spews from airplanes, rockets or routine balloon launches. "We are not, for example, testing whether it's possible to scatter sunlight back to space, because there is no meaningful scientific uncertainty about that question.". Excessive aluminum in the brain. Harvard researchers proposed a small-scale experiment that would spray aerosols into the atmosphere to reflect some sunlight back into space, a technology aimed at minimizing global warming. According to Snopes,. The full text of the Solar Geoengineering Non-Use Agreement can be read here. Improved understanding of these processes will help answer applied questions such as, is it possible to find aerosols that can reduce or eliminate ozone loss, without increasing other physical risks?". The team noted: "The test will pose no significant hazard to people or the environment. The chemical is non-toxic and the amount released will also be small. So, is all of this a good idea or not? Weitere Informationen ber die Verwendung Ihrer personenbezogenen Daten finden Sie in unserer Datenschutzerklrung und unserer Cookie-Richtlinie. In a world of wild talk and fake news, help us stand up for the facts. In a future test, the team is planning to use a high-altitude balloon to lift a package holding calcium carbonate approximately 20 km into the atmosphere. More than 45 heavyweight academics, law professors and writers have signed the letter, including award-winning author Amitav Ghosh, Sheila Jasanoff, Pforzheimer professor of science and technology studies at Harvard Kennedy School, and Raymond T. Pierrehumbert, Halley professor of physics at the University of Oxford. British scientists have cited stratospheric aerosols from volcanic eruptions in Alaska and Mexico as the potential cause of drought in Africas Sahel region. Headlines or statements to the contrary rely on "slippery slope" arguments about geoengineering in general, not a fear that SCoPEx itself could destroy the world. ", Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters. But late last month, a Harvard advisory committee that was set up to study the projects ethical implications recommended pushing back the test until a more thorough societal engagement process can be conducted to address issues related to solar geoengineering research in Sweden, Harvard wrote. The experiment is funded in part through Harvards Solar Geoengineering Research Program, and Bill Gates is among the donors to that program. Wenn Sie Ihre Auswahl anpassen mchten, klicken Sie auf Datenschutzeinstellungen verwalten. Geoengineering is the term for technologies that try to alter Earths physical qualities on the largest scale possible.