The Office of Science and Technology Policy of the White House has unveiled a five-year research plan to investigate the potential use of “solar geoengineering” – deflecting part of the sun’s radiation in order to chill the planet.

The White House research proposal would examine several methods for limiting the Earth’s exposure to the sun, as well as the environmental and health consequences of doing so.

“The focus of this plan will be on research associated with climate intervention,” OTSP said.

CNBC reported in March that the research initiative was approved by Congress in its 2022 budget blueprint and signed by President Joe Biden.

There are several hypotheses on how to perform solar geoengineering, but the three most prominent concepts are stratospheric aerosol injection, marine cloud brightening, and cirrus cloud thinning.

Stratospheric aerosol injection involves injecting reflecting particles into the stratosphere (the second layer of the atmosphere), producing a worldwide dimming that would chill the globe.

The brightening of marine clouds is comparable. Instead of sending the reflecting particles into the stratosphere, they would be released closer to the surface of the ocean.

Professor of environmental law at UCLA Edward Parson told CNBC that this strategy would be done on a much smaller scale and would not continue as long as it would in the stratosphere.

According to CNBC, cirrus cloud thinning would require “thinning mid-level clouds, between 3.7 and 8.1 miles high, to allow heat to escape from the Earth’s surface.”

Experts provide both support and criticism for the three techniques. Some claim that solar geoengineering might reduce global warming, whilst others argue that it could cause more harm than benefit.

Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, is a famous advocate of the concept, having previously supported research aimed at experimenting with the concept.

Gates supported the 2017 start of Harvard’s Solar Geoengineering Research Program with funding.

In order to cool the world, one research effort in collaboration with the Swedish Space Corp. would have imitated a volcanic explosion by spraying millions of tons of particles throughout the globe.

More on this story via The Western Journal:

However, the project drew criticism from many who worried about the possible effects that it could cause. This included the native Saami people whose land was near the launch site in Sweden.

In June 2021, over 30 groups of indigenous peoples from around the world urged Harvard to scrap the experiment.

In a letter drafted by the Saami Council, they said the idea of “solar geoengineering” went against their “understanding and experience of how to respect and live in harmony with nature.” CONTINUE READING…