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Climate change due to global warming is not an unknown phenomenon. However, a recent study has said that a climate intervention strategy focused on decreasing water vapor (WV) concentrations near the tropopause and in the stratosphere could potentially cool the rapidly warming Earth.
According to a study published in Science Advances, researchers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and NASA plan to inject ice high into the air so that the water vapor in the upper atmosphere dries out a little and that could counteract a small amount of heat caused by man.
In particular, water vapor plays a powerful role in the Earth’s greenhouse effect that eventually leads to the increase in the planet’s surface temperature.
According to NASA, Earth’s surface temperature would be about 59 degrees Fahrenheit (33 degrees Celsius) cooler without greenhouse gases.
What is the hibernator effect?
The greenhouse effect is a natural process that helps keep the Earth’s temperature within a habitable range. But in recent years, surface temperatures have increased due to human activities such as burning fossil fuels and deforestation, leading to global warming. Now, scientists have found a new way to cool an overheated Earth: by reducing the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere.
How does water vapor trap heat?
NASA has explained that water vapor amplifies the warming of the Earth’s surface caused by other greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane.
Water vapor is generated when the amount of methane and CO2 increases in the atmosphere, leading to increased evaporation. Since warmer air retains more moisture, its water vapor concentration increases. Specifically, this happens because water vapor does not condense or precipitate out of the atmosphere as easily at higher temperatures, NASA said.
The water vapor then absorbs the heat radiated from the Earth and prevents it from escaping into space. This further warms the atmosphere, generating even more water vapor in the atmosphere, something the agency called a “positive feedback loop.”
What is the ‘New Plan’ to reduce the temperature of the Earth’s surface?
In what is being touted as the latest effort to control the rapid rise in Earth’s surface temperatures, scientists will dry out the upper atmosphere, also known as geoengineering.
This branch has frequently been rejected due to its possible side effects. This branch is usually not mentioned as an alternative to reducing carbon pollution, but as a complement to emissions cuts.
How will scientists dehydrate the stratosphere?
Climate scientists plan to send high-tech planes to inject ice particles about 17 kilometers (11 miles) high, just below the stratosphere, where air slowly rises. Ice and cold air then rise to where it is colder and cause water vapor to turn into ice and fall, dehydrating the stratosphere.
However, no viable injection has yet been made.
How does dehydrating the Environment help?
At its maximum, injecting two tons per week, it could possibly extract enough water vapor to reduce warming by a small amount, about five percent of the total warming created by carbon from burning fossil fuels. But the study adds that it is not much and should not be used as an alternative to reduce pollution.
What problems can this cause?
Intentionally modifying Earth’s atmosphere to address climate change is likely to create cascading new problems, said University of Victoria climate scientist Andrew Weaver, who was not part of the study. He said the engineering aspect of this makes sense, but he compared the concept to a children’s story where a king who loves cheese is invaded by mice, gets cats to deal with the mice, then dogs to scare away the cats and lions to get rid of them. from the dogs and elephants to eliminate the lions and then back to the mice to scare away the elephants.
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