New Federal Report on Research Into Sun-Dimming Technologies Delivers More Questions Than Answers
By Bob Berwyn
While hundreds of scientists around the world are urgently advocating for a non-use agreement for atmospheric sun-dimming experiments, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy may be looking in a different direction. A June 30 report from the OSTP outlines, among other things, how to develop scenarios for deploying solar radiation management technologies like deliberately polluting the stratosphere with reflective particles, or spraying salt into coastal clouds to make them brighter and longer-lasting.
Related Knowledge Center: ENERGY BASICS: solar
Declining costs and government encouragement have resulted in a rapid increase in solar energy production in the United States over the past 10 years, although solar’s share remains small: 1.6 percent of all electricity generation in 2018. That rapid growth is projected to continue.