Wednesday, May 6, 2015

What is the Scariest Climate Change Scenario of All?

Ken Caldeira, a respected climate scientist has issued a warning.

He explains that it would only require a few people with a few billion dollars to geoengineer planetary cooling. This could be done by using planes pumping the sky full of small particles, mimicking the cooling effect that a volcanic eruption has on the planet.

Perhaps a heat stress induced famine in China, India, or the tropics could motivate a government or wealthy funded organization to take this type of independent action with the intention of restoring food security, a desperate response to a desperate situation. Caldeira tells us that through geoengineering, humans have the capability to force down temperatures ten degrees Fahrenheit. The resulting cooling would happen in a dangerously uneven and unpredictable way.

Caldeira says that he has become convinced that if there will be a climate catastrophe, it will be the result of the interaction between the climate systems and social institutions.

Source: america.aljazeera.com