Provides best practices for obtaining and applying solar resource data across a range of solar technologies, including photovoltaics (PV), solar heating and
This paper presents an approach to Solar Radiation Management (SRM) using a tethered solar shield at the modified gravitational L1 Lagrange point.
Solar radiation management (SRM) encompasses a range of techniques aimed at reflecting sunlight to reduce global temperatures. The most studied and acknowledged
SRM attempts to modify the amount of solar energy that reaches the Earth's surface, effectively offsetting some of the warming effects of greenhouse gasses.
Application of the precautionary principle; · Establishment of a scientific forum for inclusive dialogue; · Support of a global review process to
In this chapter, we briefly review what is known about proposed solar radiation management (SRM) approaches and related governance and ethical issues and conclude with a discussion of the research needed to better understand SRM. For use of SRM as a potential “backstop option” in the case of an emerging “climate emergency,” improved observations and understanding of climate system thresholds, reversibility, and abrupt changes (see Chapter 6)—for example, observations to let us know when an ice sheet or methane hydrate field may become unstable (e.g., Khvorostyanov et al., 2008; Shakhova et al., 2010)—could inform societal debate and decision making about needs for deployment of a climate intervention system. There is, however, additional research that would be needed to support full evaluation of SRM approaches (just as there is with other options for limiting the magnitude of future climate change), including a variety of social, ecological, and physical sciences (see Chapter 4).
Speakers highlighted SRM’s major governance challenges, including the growing role of private actors in implementing SRM technologies, increasing political polarization—illustrated by recent state-level bans in the U.S.—and a glaring lack of international coordination. They emphasized the need for greater transparency, inclusive decision-making processes, and meaningful inclusion of indigenous peoples and communities in the Global South in decision-making processes related to SRM governance and implementation. Speakers and discussants examined the current state and potential future of SRM research and implementation to better understand SRM’s governance gaps, particularly around SAI deployment. Pew Research surveys have found that in the U.S., public support for SRM is relatively low; in 2018 and again in 2021, 53% of those surveyed said that they thought SRM “would not make a difference in reducing the effects of global climate change.”. Despite the widespread mistrust and poor public perception, roundtable speakers anticipated that a government, private company, or even a wealthy individual might deploy SRM technologies within the next few decades.
**Solar Radiation Modification (SRM) refers to deliberate, large-scale actions intended to decrease global average surface temperatures by increasing the reflection of sunlight away from the Earth.** Proposed SRM methods involve the use of aerosols (small particles) or other materials to increase the reflectivity of the atmosphere, clouds, or Earth’s surface. **Long-term protection of Earth’s climate and oceans requires substantial reductions in emissions and atmospheric concentrations of CO2 and other GHGs. SRM is not considered a substitute for climate mitigation efforts, which include decarbonization and GHG emission cuts.** SRM research is being conducted as a response to growing concerns that the pace of CO2 emissions reductions and CDR technology development is not sufficient to avoid severe impacts of climate change in the next decades. **Many of the processes most important for understanding SRM approaches—such as those that control the formation of clouds and aerosols—are among the most uncertain components of the climate system.** Climate models differ in simulating large-scale aerosol climate effects, including on surface temperatures, due to variations in how aerosol processes, atmospheric transport and mixing, and physics are represented.