As an extension of China’s $16 billion plan to combat air pollution in its cities, today the China National Space Administration (CNSA) announced an ambitious plan to export the nation’s emissions to Mars. China is currently the world’s largest producer of greenhouse gases – its annual emissions total 8.9 billion tons. The unprecedented plan would greatly reduce emissions on Earth while warming the climate on Mars, causing the planet’s polar ice caps to melt and eventually creating an atmosphere capable of sustaining life.

Read the rest of China Announces Plans to Export Greenhouse Gases to Terraform Mars

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: air pollution, Beijing air pollution, carbon emissions, china, China air pollution, geoengineering, ghg emissions, green design, greenhouse gas, mars, sustainable design, terraforming

2012 saw the United States hit by some of the most devastating droughts in recent memory. However it’s not just America’s farmers and agricultural developers that have been affected. The Mississippi River, one of the country’s main shipping channels, has become increasingly shallow over the last few months to the point that now the Army Corps of Engineers is in a race to deepen the river to keep navigation open between St. Louis and Cairo, Illinois.

Read the rest of Army Corps Of Engineers Races to Deepen Mississippi River as Drought Threatens to Close it to Shipping Traffic

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: Army Corp of Engineers, Climate Change, droughts, geoengineering, Mississippi River, rainfall, shipping, US cargo, us droughts, US shipping

The amount of ice in the Arctic Ocean shrunk to an all time low in September, with the area covered now only half of what it was in the 1980s. This alarming development along with the global community’s inability to come to a consensus about cutting CO2 emissions has led Harvard professor of applied physics David Keith to look at a technological solution to reversing the warming of the Arctic. In a paper published in Nature Climate Change and an affiliated study in the Environmental Research Letters, Keith proposes a way to refreeze the Arctic through geoengineering.

Read the rest of Harvard Scientist Proposes a Way to Refreeze the Arctic to Combat Possible Global Warming Disaster

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: counteracting the greenhouse gas effect, cutting co2 emissions, David Keith, Environmental Research Letters, geoengineering, global warming emergency, harvard professor of applied physics, injecting reflective particles in the atmosphere, killing drought, nature climate change, reducing sunlight reaching the earths surface, reversing the melting of the arctic ice cap, shrinking arctic ice, sudden collapse of ice sheets, united nations convention on biological diversity, using gulfstream jets to inject reflective particles into the atmosphere

The Guardian is reporting that a July dump of 100 tonnes of iron sulphate in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of British Columbia, Canada, by California businessman Russ George has fueled a plankton bloom as large as 10,000 square kilometers. The dump is part of a rogue geoengineering experiment that is intended to demonstrate that ocean fertilization using iron can draw carbon from the atmosphere and sequester it in the ocean long-term to help combat climate change. But environmentalists have called George’s algae bloom experiment a “blatant violation of two international resolutions.”

Read the rest of Rogue Geoengineering Experiment Creates Massive Algae Bloom in Pacific Ocean

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: algae, August 2012, BLOOM, carbon, Climate Change, diatom, dioxide, fertilization, geoengineering, iron sulphate, nasa, ocean, phytoplankton, russ george, sequestration

We’ve seen many strange geoengineering proposals over the years, but this has to rank as one of the most bizarre – in the Nov. 12 issue of the journal Advances in Space Research, a team from the University of Strathclyde proposed blowing up asteroids in order to create a large dust clouds that would act as a sunshade for the planet. This ‘dust sunshield’ would reflect sun light to stop it from heating the planet and melting the icecaps. However there are many that feel that a geoengineering project on this scale would do more harm than good.

Read the rest of Scientists Suggest Dust Clouds From Exploded Asteroids Could Combat Global Warming

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: asteroid dust, asteroids, Climate Change, dust cloud, geoengineering, geoengineering projects, global warming, space mirrors, university of Strathclyde

The world’s deserts receive a tremendous amount of solar exposure – in fact, it’s estimated that if just 0.3% of the Saharan Desert was used for a concentrating solar plant, it would produce enough energy to power all of Europe. Architect and technologist Otto Ng has designed a large solar canopy called the Powerscape that is capable of generating energy while serving as a functioning habitat. While the canopy has the potential to be a cheap and practical system for harnessing solar energy, the concept of placing a giant canopy over desert areas does raise a few questions.

Read the rest of Powerscape Solar Canopy Provides Power and Shelter in the Desert

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: "solar energy", Canopy, Design, geoengineering, habitat, otto ng, powerscape, solar canopy, Solar Power, TED Conference, TENT

A few months ago we posted “5 Crazy Ways To Stop Climate Change” – a list of geoengineering concepts put forward to stop the planet from warming. One of the ideas was to essentially “wrap Greenland in a blanket” in order to reflect the sun’s rays back into space and prevent the country’s glaciers from melting. While it sounds insane, a new study published this week in the journal Environmental Research Letters reveals that reflecting sunlight back into space is actually “the cheapest way for us to combat global warming”.

Read the rest of Reflecting Sunlight Into Space Is The Cheapest Way To Prevent Climate Change

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: Design, Environmental Research Letters, geoengineering, global warming, green design, greenland, reflecting sunlight, space, sulphur, sunlight, sunlight reflecting cloud, sustainable design, wrap up greenland

Scientists have discussed many bizarre geoengineering methods to reverse the effects of climate change, but this is one of the oddest; American geoengineers believe that by dispersing sulphate aerosols in the atmosphere, they can cool vast regions of the planet. How do they aim to do this? By using high-flying balloons to spray thousands of tons of sun-reflecting chemical particles into the atmosphere, which in turn create massive artificial clouds.

Read the rest of US Geoengineers Want to Make Artificial Clouds to Cool Planet

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: america rainfall, artificial clouds, artificial volcano, Climate Change, Cool Planet, David Keith, european rainfall, geoengineering, geoengineering madness, geoengineering projects, geoengineering side effects, global rainfall, mount pinatobe, sulfate clouds, sulfur aerosols, sulfur injection, ucla

Geoengineering is the deliberate large-scale engineering and manipulation of the environment to combat or counteract anthropogenic changes in atmospheric chemistry. It has long been touted as a way to counter the catastrophic effects of global warming, but has been considered dangerous by some as it interferes with the world’s delicate ecosystems. This week, such fears gained the support of scientists from four European countries who believe that large scale engineering projects could radically reduce rainfall in Europe and North America.

Read the rest of Study Finds That Large-Scale Geoengineering Projects Could Disrupt Global Rainfall

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: america rainfall, european rainfall, geoengineering, geoengineering projects, geoengineering side effects, global rainfall

A controversial geoengineering experiment that would have simulated the cooling effect of a volcanic eruption was canceled this week over a patent dispute. A team of scientists in the United Kingdom had announced last year their plans to send a gigantic balloon 12 miles above earth to recreate a volcanic cloud and study whether it could have cooled the earth. But arguments over a patent application, submitted before this proposed project had even begun, raised concerns over a potential conflict of interest.

Read the rest of Geoengineering Experiment in UK Canceled Over Patent Dispute

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: artificial cloud, geoengineering, geoengineering experiment, geoengineering projects, global warming, patent dispute, SPICE, Stratospheric Particle Injection for Climate Engineering, united kingdom

Climate talks have stalled, and many countries view geoengineering — like cloud whitening or constructing a space-based sun shade — to be too risky. Could the genetic engineering of the human body to make people smaller and more energy-efficient, for example, be a last-ditch effort to combat climate change? That’s just one of the controversial ideas floated by authors S. Matthew Liao, Anders Sandberg, and Rebecca Roache in a new paper that’s set to be published in the journal Ethics, Policy and the Environment.

Read the rest of Can Scientists Combat Climate Change by Bioengineering the Human Body?

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: bioengineering, carbon footprint, Climate Change, CO2, DNA, genetic engineering, geoengineering, global warming, kyoto protocol, livestock, Meat, Newborn Baby, S. Matthew Liao, science, Technology, vegan, vegetarian, vegetarianism

Mongolia seems like the last place on earth that should worry about global warming, but all the same the frigid northern country is already planning for the worst. In addition to crazy cold winters, it turns out that the capital city Ulan Bator also experiences scorcher summers that exact a tremendous energy load. To cut down on energy use and scale back the urban heat island effect, local geoengineering firm ECOS & EMI plans to create massive chunks of manmade ice, like the one seen above from BLDGBLOG, modeled after naturally-occuring naleds, which will be used to not only cool the city during the summer, but also provide fresh drinking water!

Read the rest of World’s Largest Chunk of Manmade Ice to Cool Mongolia’s Capital City!

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: Climate Change, eco design, ECOS & EMI, geoengineering, global warming, green design, ice, ice chunk, mongolia, mongolia's capital, naleds, sustainable design, ulan bator, urban heat island effect

Earlier this year a group of thinkers around the world gathered at Chicheley Hall outside of London to talk about how to stop global climate change. Their almost universal conclusion was that, at this point, geoengineering is our only viable option. Now a group at Bristol University in the UK has embarked on an experiment — the first of its kind — to create a fake volcano that would help reflect the rays of the sun back into space and away from the Earth’s atmosphere.

Read the rest of Scientists Design a Fake Volcano for Climate Change Experiment

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: bristol university, climate change experiment, climate experiment, geoengineering, global warming, spice experiment, stop climate change, stop global warming, Stratospheric Particle Injection for Climate Engineering, university of bristol, volcano experiment, what is geoengineering

Britain’s national science academy, the Royal Society, recently organized a conference at Chicheley Hall — 40 miles north of London — where thinkers from around the world gathered to decide if, and how, the international community could implement geoengineering tactics to stop global climate change. If the international community fails to mitigate climate change with policy and infrastructure, we’re going to need to take some drastic measures to keep the planet inhabitable. The attendees at the conference decided that though the full consequences are unknown, the only real plan that would work would be to block out the sun.

Read the rest of Scientists Consider Blocking Out the Sun to Stop Climate Change

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: block out the sun, climate change conference, climate change plan, climate change policy, geoengineering, global warming conversations, global warming policy, how to stop climate change, how to stop global warming, international climate change issues

Environmentalists have long argued about whether geoengineering (using technology to alter the climate) is a good way to tackle climate change. But the tactic has some heavy hitters on its side, including Bill Gates. The Microsoft founder recently announced plans to invest $300,000 into research at the University of Calgary for unique solutions and responses to climate change. Part of that research included lab tests on machines that suck up seawater and spray it into the air, seeding white clouds that reflect rays of sunlight away from Earth.

Read the rest of Bill Gates Announces Funding for Seawater-Spraying Cloud Machines

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: bill gates, Climate Change, geoengineering, global warming, green design, silver lining, sustainable design

A Harvard physicist recently proposed an interesting way to cool the earth — brighten the sea. Russell Seitz wants to pump bursts of tiny bubbles into the ocean. Seitz reasons that because bubbles increase water’s reflectivity, injecting tons of extra bubbles into the sea will lower water temperatures and help cool the planet. It may sound totally crazy, but Seitz says he has research to back up the idea.

Read the rest of Injecting Tons of Tiny Bubbles into the Sea May Help Cool Planet

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: albedo, bubbles cool planet, bubbles in the sea, geoengineering, harvard, harvard physicists, lowering water temperatures, microbubbles, ocean reflectivity, parts per million, Russell Seitz, undershine

Back in 1979, Winooski, Vermont, a town that often experiences -20 degree weather in January, proposed building a giant dome over their city to help reduce energy costs and keep warm throughout the winter. Thirty years ago, we were experiencing an energy crisis with rising oil prices, and people were looking for solutions to reduce their costs. Nowadays, while we’re also looking to reduce our carbon footprint in addition to costs, the concept is still applicable. By doming off the small city of 7,000, Winooski could stay warm all year round, reduce energy costs and emissions, grow food all year, and ban cars inside the dome. Environmentally, it seems like it has potential.

What do you think?

Read the rest of Could Encasing Cities in Giant Domes Be an Energy Solution for Our Future?

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: carbon emissions, city dome, dome, geoengineering, reduce emissions, reduce energy costs, vermont, winooski