how much for 1 ice age? (surprisingly little)
Really interesting talk about how we might mitigate climate change in the short term: inject a bunch of ash into the stratosphere. Increase the planet’s albedo, counteract the greenhouse effect. The science is 50 years old and says it will work, it will work fast, and it will be surprisingly cheap. The dangers? There are some as-yet poorly-researched side-effects, such as the destruction of ozone. Also it’s a band-aid and it’s too easy. It could destroy the political will needed to enact long-term, responsible solutions.
But, it might keep our coastal cities above sea level over the next 100 years. Pretty compelling.
November 14th, 2007 at 6:09 am
Worth giving it a shot, but as you note, it then becomes too easy—a band-aid on a broken bone.
Also, not sure how long it’ll have an effect, either; there was cooling due to Pinatubo, but it didn’t seem to last very long.