Researchers rejected the wild idea of using tiny hollow glass beads to stop sea ice loss. Instead, they discovered that microspheres could actually speed up ice melting rather than slow it down.
A 2018 study It was proposed to spray layers of glass powderTo brighten Arctic sea-ice surface, use hollow glass spheres that are about the same thickness as a human hair.
The study authors stated that this would increase the amount sunlight reflected. In a region of the world where climate change is having the most devastating effectsThis will lower the surface temperature and give sea ice an opportunity to recover.
Satellite data shows that Arctic sea ice is “The rate of melting is alarming“. Simulations support it It could all be lostBy 2050, Arctic summers will be common. The new research reveals that tiny glass beads are not the solution.
“Our results indicate that the effort to stop Arctic sea-ice melting has the opposite effect than what was intended,” SaysMelinda Webster is a polar scientist at University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute. “And that is detrimental for Earth’s climate as well as human society in general.”
Webster joined forces with Stephen Warren, University of Washington atmospheric scientist to verify the claims of the 2018 modeling study. This study had concluded that a layer of 65-micrometer-wide glassspheres spread out about five beads deep could increase reflectivity and thickness of Arctic Sea Ice.
The 2018 study did not consider thin sea ice and little snow cover. Instead, the duo calculated solar energy changes across eight Arctic sea ice conditions at different times of year. They modelled the same thickness of hollow, transparent microspheres..
They also considered the effects of sunlight on the beads, as well as sunlight at sea level and in upper atmosphere.
Microspheres in layers can make thin, reflective ice newer, as the 2018 study revealed. Webster and Warren say that the effect of glass beads on thin ice would be negligible because it is most common in winter and autumn when there is very little sunlight. Write.
The Arctic sea ice blankets in bright-white, deep snow in spring. Adding glass beads to this sea ice surface would increase warming and lead to ice loss.
Warren and Webster say that hollow glass microspheres can absorb some sunlight. Spreading them onto sea ice will darken bright surfaces, such as snow-covered or snow-covered ice. Write. “The net effect is the opposite of what was expected: spreading hollow glass microspheres in the Arctic would heat the Arctic climate and speed up sea-ice losses.”
Although the hollow glass microspheres reflect a large fraction of sunlight, a thin layer of beads still absorbs about 10 percent of energy from the Sun’s rays – enough to hasten warming in the Arctic.
If non-absorbing glass beads could be developed, they could cool the Arctic climate – but it would take 360 million tons of hollow glass beads spread over sea ice each year, Webster and Warren found. Even if these beads worked in theory they will still emit more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere from manufacturing and transporting them.
This is, in other words, not the type of action you want to take. Climate changeThat’s what we need. Reducing carbon emissions is what matters. When we talk about restoring ecosystems, it’s better to put our efforts into restoring forests, marshes and peatlands. You can absorb large amounts of carbon dioxideIf done right,
We’ve spent decades deliberating about climate change. More than half of the population has lostThe Arctic’s permanent glaciers.
Webster states that microspheres are not an option to restore Arctic seaice. Says. “Science should continue to look for ways to reduce global warming. However, society must change the behavior that contributes to climate change.
We already know this, fortunately. How to do this, and the outcomes – fewer carbon emissions – are a much safer bet than gambling on Extremely riskyAnd It is not well-tested. geoengineering strategies.
Changes to heat-absorbing built environments whitening rooftopsGreening cities could also be a great place to begin.
The study was published in The Future of Earth.
