The Peril and Promise of Solar Geoengineering
When:
Wednesday, Oct 30, 2019 6:00p -
7:30p
Where:
Geological Lecture Hall
24 Oxford Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
Admission:
FREE
Categories:
Lectures & Conferences
Event website:
https://hmnh.harvard.edu/event/peril-and-promise-solar-geoengineering
David Keith
Gordon McKay Professor of Applied Physics, Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences; Professor of Public Policy, Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard University
Solar geoengineering research aims to reduce the impacts of global climate change. One possibility is to put aerosols into the stratosphere to alter Earth’s energy budget. This emerging technology entails risks and uncertainties, along with serious challenges to global governance. The greatest threat, perhaps, is that it will be used as a technical fix and encourage people to avoid the emissions cuts that are fundamental to curbing long-term climate risks. David Keith will describe the simple physics underlying the climate’s response to stratospheric aerosols, the risks, and the trade-offs among solar geoengineering, carbon removal, and emissions reductions.
Gordon McKay Professor of Applied Physics, Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences; Professor of Public Policy, Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard University
Solar geoengineering research aims to reduce the impacts of global climate change. One possibility is to put aerosols into the stratosphere to alter Earth’s energy budget. This emerging technology entails risks and uncertainties, along with serious challenges to global governance. The greatest threat, perhaps, is that it will be used as a technical fix and encourage people to avoid the emissions cuts that are fundamental to curbing long-term climate risks. David Keith will describe the simple physics underlying the climate’s response to stratospheric aerosols, the risks, and the trade-offs among solar geoengineering, carbon removal, and emissions reductions.