Solar geoengineering, a bunch of techniques that aim to mask some effects of climate change by blocking sunlight, wasn’t on the agenda for this month’s COP30.
It should have been. A record-breaking funding round for companies doing this stuff shows people are getting serious about trying to artificially cool the planet. That’s terrifying, especially when these businesses are largely unregulated.
In a recent poll of climate researchers, two-thirds said they thought there would be an attempt to deploy large-scale solar radiation modification (SRM) by 2100. Only 9% said there wouldn’t be. That’s a worrying reflection of woeful progress on cutting emissions and pessimism about the future. After all, solar geoengineering can only act as painkiller, not cure, for the climate crisis. And it comes with a range of poorly understood potential side effects.