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Geoengineering: The world's largest control problem

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  • MacMartin, Douglas G.
  • Kravitz, Ben
  • Keith, David

Abstract

Solar geoengineering (or Solar Radiation Management, SRM) refers to any intentional, large-scale manipulation of the Earth's incoming solar radiation to offset some of the effects of anthropogenic greenhouse gases, reducing the associated risks from climate changes. Examples of such methods are injecting aerosols into the stratosphere or increasing marine cloud reflectivity, both of which would reflect some sunlight back to space. There are many serious concerns associated with any such approach, and also many challenges. One often overlooked aspect in geoengineering research is that this is a control problem, requiring (a) feedback of the observed climate state to manage significant uncertainty in both the radiative forcing and the climate's dynamic response to this forcing, and (b) optimization of the distribution of radiative effect to minimize regional disparities as well as side-effects from the geoengineering implementation. We present recent progress on control for this challenging problem, building on [1, 2], and discuss open research gaps. This is the first time an explicit external feedback loop has been implemented in a fully coupled general circulation model of the Earth's climate.

Suggested Citation

  • MacMartin, Douglas G. & Kravitz, Ben & Keith, David, 2014. "Geoengineering: The world's largest control problem," Scholarly Articles 23936193, Harvard Kennedy School of Government.
    • Handle: RePEc:hrv:hksfac:23936193
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    File URL: http://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/handle/1/23936193/168.MacMartin.ControlProblem.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Jim M. Haywood & Andy Jones & Nicolas Bellouin & David Stephenson, 2013. "Asymmetric forcing from stratospheric aerosols impacts Sahelian rainfall," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 3(7), pages 660-665, July.
    2. Juan Moreno-Cruz & Katharine Ricke & David Keith, 2012. "A simple model to account for regional inequalities in the effectiveness of solar radiation management," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 110(3), pages 649-668, February.
    3. Douglas G. MacMartin & David W. Keith & Ben Kravitz & Ken Caldeira, 2013. "Management of trade-offs in geoengineering through optimal choice of non-uniform radiative forcing," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 3(4), pages 365-368, April.
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