Cloud ‘engineering’ could be more effective for climate cooling than previously thought, because of the increased cloud cover produced, new research shows.
Cloud ‘engineering’ could be more effective for climate cooling than previously thought, because of the increased cloud cover produced, new research shows.
In a study published in Nature Geoscience, researchers at the University of Birmingham found that marine cloud brightening (MCB), also known as marine cloud engineering, works primarily by increasing the amount of cloud cover, accounting for 60-90% of the cooling effect.
Previous models used to estimate the cooling effects of MCB have focused on the ability of aerosol injection to produce a brightening effect on the cloud, which in turn increases the amount of sunlight reflected back into space.
The practice of MCB has attracted much attention in recent years as a way of offsetting the global warming effects caused by humans and buying some time while the global economy decarbonises. It works by spraying tiny particles, or aerosols, into the atmosphere where they mix with clouds and with the primary aim of increasing the amount of sunlight that clouds can reflect.
Read more at University of Birmingham
Photo Credit: Simon via Pixabay
