Tag: weather modification

Researchers launched a solar geoengineering test flight in the UK last fall

Last September, researchers in the UK launched a high-altitude weather balloon that released a few hundred grams of sulfur dioxide into the stratosphere, a potential scientific first in the solar geoengineering field, MIT Technology Review has learned.

Solar geoengineering is the theory that humans can ease global warming by deliberately reflecting more sunlight into space. One possible means is spraying sulfur dioxide in the stratosphere, in an effort to mimic a cooling effect that occurs in the aftermath of major volcanic eruptions. It is highly controversial given concerns about potential unintended consequences, among other issues.

The UK effort was not a test of or experiment in geoengineering itself. Rather, the stated goal was to evaluate a low-cost, controllable, recoverable balloon system, according to details obtained by MIT Technology Review. Such a system could be used for small-scale geoengineering research efforts, or perhaps for an eventual distributed geoengineering deployment involving numerous balloons.

The “Stratospheric Aerosol Transport and Nucleation,” or SATAN, balloon systems were made from stock and hobbyist components, with hardware costs that ran less than $1,000. 

Keep reading

Climate change activist goes rogue releasing ‘mini volcanoes’ to cool atmosphere

AMexico-based startup will next week launch sulphur particles into the stratosphere in a “rogue” move to create a “mini-volcano” effect it says could help cool the planet. 

The technique, known as stratospheric aerosol injection, mimics the impact of volcanoes by using a weather balloon to release sulphur, creating a cloud of particles that reflect the sun’s rays and have a cooling impact. 

It is one of several geoengineering techniques being studied as a way to cool the planet to avoid breaching internationally agreed limits on global warming. 

The amount of particles that start-up Make Sunsets plans to release in coming days, up to 2kg, will make a minimal difference to overall warming. 

But experts in geoengineering say the launches set a dangerous precedent for private companies or governments to interfere with the planet’s atmosphere. 

The company is backed by two venture capital funds, and is selling “cooling credits” to the public for $15 (£12), which it says pays for 1g of sulphur, expected to produce enough cooling to offset a ton of carbon emissions for a year. 

It released a first balloon in December in Mexico, but will next week launch from California, after the Mexican government released a statement criticising the first effort. 

Co-founder Luke Isemans said the potential risks of what he is doing are outweighed by the known threat of climate change. 

Keep reading

Mexico Becomes First Nation to Admit Harms of Geoengineering, Halts Future Experiments

The Mexican government has announced a moratorium on solar geoengineering experiments following an unauthorized small-scale experiment by a U.S. startup. How will the decision impact the plans of globalists who aim to use geoengineering as a gateway to world governance?

Only weeks ago, Luke Iseman, the CEO of Make Sunsets, the company behind the experiment, announced to the world that he had released two weather balloons filled with reflective sulfur particles as part of publicity stunt meant to spark conversation around the science of geoengineering.

Geoengineering is a controversial science of manipulating the climate for the stated purpose of fighting man-made climate change. There are several types of geoengineering, including Solar Radiation Management (SRM) or solar geoengineering.  Stratospheric aerosol injection, or SAI, is a specific solar geoengineering practice which involves spraying aerosols into the sky in an attempt to deflect the sun’s rays. The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy is currently developing a five-year research plan on solar geoengineering.

Keep reading

Scientists Redirect Lightning Strikes Using a Weather-controlling Super Laser

Scientists in France have created a way to divert lightning strikes using a weather-controlling super laser.

Researchers with the Polytechnic Institute of Paris guided the strikes from thunderclouds to places where they don’t cause damage. The team says the new technique could save power stations, airports, launchpads, and other buildings from disaster.

The system creates a virtual lightning rod, metal conductors that intercept flashes and guide their currents into the ground.

“The findings extend the current understanding of laser physics in the atmosphere and may aid in the development of novel lightning protection strategies,” says corresponding author Dr. Aurelien Houard, according to a statement from SWNS.

The five-ton device is about the size of a large car and fires up to a thousand pulses per second. The scientists installed it near a telecommunications tower in the Swiss Alps – which is struck by lightning around 100 times a year.

Keep reading

A startup says it’s begun releasing particles into the atmosphere, in an effort to tweak the climate

A startup claims it has launched weather balloons that may have released reflective sulfur particles in the stratosphere, potentially crossing a controversial barrier in the field of solar geoengineering.

Geoengineering refers to deliberate efforts to manipulate the climate by reflecting more sunlight back into space, mimicking a natural process that occurs in the aftermath of large volcanic eruptions. In theory, spraying sulfur and similar particles in sufficient quantities could potentially ease global warming.

It’s not technically difficult to release such compounds into the stratosphere. But scientists have mostly (though not entirely) refrained from carrying out even small-scale outdoor experiments. And it’s not clear that any have yet injected materials into that specific layer of the atmosphere in the context of geoengineering-related research.

That’s in part because it’s highly controversial. Little is known about the real-world effect of such deliberate interventions at large scales, but they could have dangerous side effects. The impacts could also be worse in some regions than others, which could provoke geopolitical conflicts. 

Keep reading

White House Quietly Reveals 5-year Plan to Spray Particles in the Sky to Dim the Sun

Earlier this month, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) quietly revealed its plan to cool the Earth by reflecting sunlight back into space, The plan was tucked neatly away within the thousands of pages of the Consolidated Appropriations Act and the OSTP was directed by Congress to complete it.

The White House is now requesting comments on its plan for geoengineering which includes multiple intervention protocols, namely spraying aerosols into the stratosphere to reflect sunlight back into space.

What was once the subject of dystopian fiction is now being kicked around as official policy and most Americans are entirely unaware. Nearly three years ago, TFTP reported on the plan by Congress, which began under Donald Trump, to procure funding for this type of research.

The top climate change scientist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration received $4 million in funding from Congress along with permission to study two highly controversial geoengineering methods in an attempt to cool the Earth. According to Science Magazine, David Fahey, director of the Chemical Sciences Division of NOAA’s Earth System Research Laboratory, said that the federal government is ready to examine the science behind “geoengineering”—or what he dubbed a “Plan B” for climate change.

Now, they’ve set a deadline for the research and the mad scientists are likely chomping at the bit to get started. As CNBC reported:

Harvard professor David Keith, who first worked on the topic in 1989, said it’s being taken much more seriously now. He points to formal statements of support for researching sunlight reflection from the Environmental Defense Fund, the Union of Concerned Scientists, and the Natural Resources Defense Council, and the creation of a new group he advises called the Climate Overshoot Commission, an international group of scientists and lawmakers that’s evaluating climate interventions in preparation for a world that warms beyond what the Paris Climate Accord recommended.

Though the White House is now laying out its plans for geoengineering, the idea of dimming the sun is nothing new and dates back to a 1965 report to President Lyndon B. Johnson entitled “Restoring the Quality of Our Environment.”

Since then, global think tanks and special interests have been pushing for some sort of geoengineering plan all across the planet.

Keep reading

Scientists propose controversial plan to refreeze North and South Poles by spraying sulphur dioxide into atmosphere

Scientists have outlined a controversial plan to refreeze the North and South Poles, and dial down the global thermostat.

They say high-flying jets could spray microscopic aerosol particles into the atmosphere to reflect sunlight and cool the melting icecaps.

Around 175,000 flights a year would be needed, releasing millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide.

But a former UK chief scientist backed the plans, telling Sky News that polar warming is now critical – and refreezing the ice could hold back the rise in global sea levels.

The new study was led by Wake Smith from Yale University in the United States.

He warned the plan would treat an important symptom of climate change, not the cause.

Keep reading

Weather Modification Has Quite a War-ish Background

Are there specific instances we can find of weather manipulation being used by militaries against their opponents? To begin our discussion, let us first look back to 1946 when the first man-made snowstorm took place.

The beginning of weather modification

Shortly after the end of World War II, a duo of men set to the skies. One was pilot Curtis Talbot, and with him was Dr. Vincent J. Schaefer. The two men set out to 14,000 feet with just one goal in mind: they were going to make history.

Upon reaching their desired altitude, the men proceeded to release three pounds of dry ice into the air. What happened next would leave both of the men dumbfounded. As Dr. Schaefer said of the moment, there were “long streamers of snow falling from the base of the cloud through which we had just passed. I shouted to Curt to swing around, and as we did so, we passed through a mass of glistening snow crystals! Needless to say, we were quite excited.”

The men had just created snow. 

The ramifications of this were huge, but there was something even more important to consider here: the timing was impeccable as well.

Keep reading

UN to Consider Spraying “Sulfate Aerosols” Above the Earth’s Surface to Reduce Global Temperatures

The United Nations is considering the risks of spraying “sulfate aerosols” above the earth’s surface to reduce global temperatures, according to a Reuters report.

Yesterday, a U.N. climate panel released a “code red” report that warned of “deadly heat waves, gargantuan hurricanes and other weather extremes” if drastic action isn’t taken quickly to stop man-made climate change.

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), humans are “unequivocally” to blame, with U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres calling for a total end to the use of coal and fossil fuels.

According to a Reuters report on the issue, “controversial methods” of geoengineering are now being actively considered by the UN to limit and reverse global temperature increases.

“For example, humans could spray sulfate aerosols – tiny reflective particles – into the stratosphere 20 to 25 kilometers (12 to 16 miles) above the earth’s surface to reflect more sunlight back into space, which lowers global temperatures,” states the report.

However, using this method would create “uncertainty, moral issues (and) ethical issues” because “sulfate aerosols have the side effect of also lowering average precipitation.”

Keep reading

Dubai makes its own RAIN to tackle 122F heat: Drones blast clouds with electrical charge to produce downpours

The United Arab Emirates is creating its own rain using drones that fly into clouds and unleash electrical charges to beat the sweltering 122 degrees Fahrenheit (50 degrees Celsius) heat. 

The rain is formed using drone technology that gives clouds an electric shock to ‘cajole them’ into clumping together and producing precipitation. 

The UAE is one of the most arid countries on Earth, and it hopes the technique could help to increase its meagre annual rainfall. 

And it is working. Video footage released by the UAE’s National Center of Meteorology shows monsoon-like downpours across the country which create a sheet of rain on the highways. 

Keep reading