As the earth heats up day by day due to the climate change, an international team of engineers and executives is activating a cutting-edge machine aimed at modifying atmospheric composition on an exposed Icelandic plateau.
If the engineers become successful in developing the machine, then the immense vacuum will soon be extracted in large volumes of the air, removing carbon dioxide, and securely storing these greenhouse gases deep underground in ancient rock formations, preventing further warming of the planet.
Few years earlier, these kinds of technologies, which seek to manipulate the natural environment, were considered fringe science due to their high costs, impracticality, and science fiction-like nature thing. However, in view of the worsening threats of climate change and global greenhouse gas emissions failing to meet reduction targets, these machines are gaining mainstream attention among scientists and investors, despite lingering doubts about their efficacy and safety.
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Scientists and engineers are promptly exploring diverse methods, including solar radiation management, ocean iron fertilization, and space-based interventions, alongside large-scale carbon capture facilities like the one in Iceland, to address rising carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere.
Since the industrial revolution, human activities have significantly altered the Earth’s atmospheric balance, leading to increased temperatures, more severe droughts and storms, and threats to human progress.
As the risks of climate change become more apparent, political and corporate leaders have pledged to limit global average temperature increases to no more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. However, the world briefly exceeded this threshold last year, with projections indicating potential temperature increases of up to 4 degrees Celsius by the end of the century.
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This has renewed interest in geoengineering, or ‘climate interventions,’ as a potential means of buying time to address the climate crisis, especially as energy consumption continues to rise, and the transition away from fossil fuels remains slow.