Study finds popular geoengineering ideas won't save the poles
A new study led by the University of Exeter found that five major ideas for cooling the polar regions—like spraying particles in the air or building sea barriers—aren't likely to work well.
The research points out big technical, environmental, and cost problems with these approaches.
Research team looked at 5 popular geoengineering methods
Researchers evaluated methods like stratospheric aerosol injection, sea curtains, spreading microbeads on ice, removing water under glaciers, and ocean fertilization.
Turns out: spraying particles doesn't work during long polar nights and could cause sudden warming if stopped; sea curtains would be super expensive and mess with marine life; microbeads would need plastic amounts as massive as global production each year; glacier water removal needs huge energy forever; and fertilizing oceans could throw food webs out of balance.
Reducing greenhouse gasses is still key to protect Earth
The team warns that betting on geoengineering could distract from real climate action.
They stress that rapid emission cuts remain the most promising way to save polar ice.
Basically: there's no shortcut—reducing greenhouse gasses is still key to protecting our planet's frozen places.