Philip J Rasch et al 2009 Environ. Res. Lett. 4 045112 doi:10.1088/1748-9326/4/4/045112
Philip J Rasch1, John Latham2,3 and Chih-Chieh (Jack) Chen2
Show affiliationsPart of Focus on Climate Engineering: Intentional Intervention in the Climate System
General circulation model computations using a fully coupled ocean–atmosphere model indicate that increasing cloud reflectivity by seeding maritime boundary layer clouds with particles made from seawater may compensate for some of the effects on climate of increasing greenhouse gas concentrations. The chosen seeding strategy (one of many possible scenarios) can restore global averages of temperature, precipitation and sea ice to present day values, but not simultaneously. The response varies nonlinearly with the extent of seeding, and geoengineering generates local changes to important climatic features. The global tradeoffs of restoring ice cover, and cooling the planet, must be assessed alongside the local changes to climate features.
92.70.Mn Impacts of global change; global warming
92.60.Nv Cloud physics; stratus and cumulus clouds
92.60.hf Tropospheric composition and chemistry, constituent transport and chemistry
92.60.Fm Boundary layer structure and processes
92.60.Jq Water in the atmosphere (humidity, clouds, evaporation, precipitation)
Issue 4 (October-December 2009)
Received 10 August 2009, accepted for publication 20 November 2009
Published 18 December 2009
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