Global warming, meet geoengineering, the deliberate modification of Earth’s environment on a large scale to suit human needs and promote habitability. While the field remains controversial due to its radical project proposals, such as a sunshade sattelite that cools the earth by limiting the earth’s sun exposure, failed efforts to reduce global warming and greenhouse gas emissions have made geoengineering a little more welcome in society.
Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone, an atmosheric chemist and president of the National Academy of Sciences, says that
Geoengineering is no magic bullet. But done correctly, it will act like an insurance policy if the world one day faces a crisis of overheating, with repercussions like melting icecaps, droughts, famines, rising sea levels and coastal flooding.
Read more about developments in the emerging field of geoengineering in the New York Times.
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