What scientists suggest

As you know, the greenhouse effect is caused not only by gases such as methane and carbon, but also by water vapor. It creates a spongy barrier that prevents the heat emitted by the Earth from escaping into space. Now scientists They are investigating the possibility of drying this layer of the atmosphere to cool our planet.

The stratosphere extends 12 to 50 kilometers above the Earth’s surface and is above another layer of the atmosphere called the troposphere. Water that naturally circulates in the troposphere leaks into the stratosphere, but this leakage is not the same everywhere on the planet.

It turned out that in the tropics the most air enters the stratosphere. Study author Joshua Schwartz, a physicist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Chemical Sciences Laboratory, explained that a small region over northern Australia is particularly important for controlling the upward movement of air and water vapor.

If we could do something about this small area, perhaps we could reduce the amount of water vapor in the stratosphere and emit more infrared radiation. [в космос] is the main idea,
– says the scientist.

The researchers tested their idea using water vapor and temperature data from NASA’s Atmospheric Tropical Tropopause Experiment (ATTREX) project, as well as computer models that simulate the removal of water vapor from the air just before it enters the stratosphere.

Once in the stratosphere, air circulates from the tropics to the poles for four years before returning to the troposphere. And all this time, water vapor traps heat, warming the planet. Therefore, the most effective way to control water vapor is to capture it before it reaches the stratosphere.

According to Schwartz, water in the upper troposphere is in the form of vapor or ice particles. In order for water vapor to crystallize into ice and precipitate, there must be enough ice to freeze the vapor rather than entering the stratosphere, or enough water vapor to spontaneously form an ice cloud.

In places where these conditions are not met, such as Australia, ice crystals can form around floating particles of mineral dust, known as ice-forming particles.

Schwartz and colleagues examined the probability in their study. Seeding the air in the region over Australia with such ice-producing particles. “If we add particles that make it easier for ice to form, ice will form. It will form a short-lived cloud, descend to lower altitudes, heat up rapidly, possibly evaporate, and the air that now rises to the stratosphere will gain air.” There is no that water.”says the scientist.

Scientists could slowly dehydrate the stratosphere by repeatedly injecting particles “where it matters,” Schwartz said. Seventy percent of warming caused by climate change has been offset.

Results

The most interesting thing is this potential side effects will be minimal. Water vapor in the stratosphere naturally varies depending on seasonal changes, and the amount in question is much smaller than these seasonal changes.

Details of the proposed strategy remain unclear. The models in the study include the use of bismuth triiodide particles, a material also being considered for another type of climate engineering known as cirrus cloud thinning.

“There’s a lot of concern about climate change. I think with more understanding we can make the right decisions. We’re exploring the possibilities and haven’t found anything that seems impossible.”– adds Schwartz.