Scientists at Boulder's National Center for Atmospheric Research (NACR) believe that the current abnormal weather will become the norm in the future. Rising concentrations of greenhouse gases, forest fires and the melting of polar ice, they say, will lead to irreversible climate change. To prevent this, the researchers propose to take advantage of developments in the field of geoengineering - actively changing climatic conditions, for example, by spraying special aerosols in the atmosphere. How effective these methods are and how they relate to conspiracy theories.
Researchers at Boulder's National Center for Atmospheric Research are proposing a proactive move to tackle so-called man-made climate change. In their opinion, the measures provided for in the Paris Climate Agreements are not enough, and greenhouse gases will change the global temperature by 2 ° C by 2040, as a result of which the inhabitants of the planet will face extreme weather anomalies that have not yet been observed in the entire history of mankind.
“What is now perceived as record anomalies will soon become an everyday occurrence,” says atmospheric dynamics expert Jadwiga Richter.
To prevent such radical climate change, scientists propose turning to geoengineering. In addition to creating purifiers that consume carbon dioxide more efficiently than conventional trees, the researchers suggest spraying sulfates into the atmosphere to trap the sun's rays and cool the Earth. This proposal will surely excite fans of alternative history - after all, scientists propose to use a method that has long been known to "truth seekers" called "chemtrails".
Climate change through aerosol spraying is not such a new and drastic measure. During the Vietnam War, the US Air Force sprayed silver iodide into rain clouds using C-130 and F-4 Phantom aircraft, causing heavy rainfall.
Operation Popeye & copy; Wikimedia Commons
Tropical downpours flooded the rice paddies and the communications routes that provided the guerrillas with weapons and ammunition from the north to fight South Vietnamese and American forces. From 1967 to 1972, the military sprayed 12 million pounds of silver iodide over Vietnam. In 1971, Operation Popeye was made public in the American press, after which the use of climate weapons was banned by Resolution 71 of the Senate. Despite the fact that the Popeye program was widely documented and not strictly classified, the term "climatic weapon" is still used only in conspiracy television programs.
Airplane C-130 & copy; amtassociation.org
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In the early 21st century, airborne aerosol spraying has re-emerged as a concern for researchers and alternative journalists after the publication of a 2001 report by Mark Blair, which claimed that the US Air Force and other Western countries were spraying barium and aluminum salts into the atmosphere to increase the effectiveness of the RFMP radar system. In the same year, the US Congress adopted Resolution HR 2977, which directly uses the term "chemtrails" - this is how the researchers call unusual condensation trails from aircraft, which, according to them, are evidence of the continuing sputtering of metal salts and other particles in the air. Scientists claim that ordinary condensation trails disappear in the air within a few minutes after the plane's flight, while the chemtrails remain in the air for a long time until they transform into cirrus clouds.
In popular culture, chemtrails have over 16 years come to be associated with control of the world's population, a sinister conspiracy to control the mind or even the genetic code of humanity, and other far-reaching theories. The statement of ex-CIA director John Brennan, made in 2016, also added fuel to the fire.
“Another example is the spectrum of technologies called geoengineering that can reverse the effects of global climate change. One of these technologies interested me the most - stratospheric aerosol spraying. A method of seeding the stratosphere with particles to help reflect sunlight and heat, similar to volcanic emissions. This technology will help lower temperatures and give the global economy the extra time it takes to phase out fossil fuels,”Brennan said.
In addition to chemtrail or geoengineering, another project has recently been reactivated in the United States, which has been stirring the imagination of researchers in alternative history and science for decades. In February 2017, the HAARP installation, created to study the nature of the ionosphere and the development of air and missile defense systems, began to conduct experiments again.
“One of the projects will create artificial northern lights. It will be impossible to see him just like that, only with the help of special cameras. We will also test HAARP to strengthen radar systems, look at the sea ice in the Arctic, maybe by conducting transmissions through the ionosphere,”said project representative Sue Mitchell.
The US Air Force project for the study of the ionosphere has also repeatedly become the center of various theories, where it appeared as a climate weapon or emitter capable of influencing the mental and psychological state of people around the planet. Researchers seeing malicious intent in geoengineering programs argue that it is with the help of chemtrails that metal salts are sprayed in the sky, which allow the HAARP installation to "see" better.
Antenna field installation HAARP & copy; UAF
The HAARP Ionosphere and Aurora Research Project was launched in 1997 and was overseen by the US Air Force. The antenna field, located in Gakon, Alaska, is capable of generating electromagnetic waves focused at a specific point in the ionosphere with a power of up to 4.8 MW. Since its launch, the project has repeatedly attracted the attention of conspiracy theorists who believe that HAARP is capable of modifying the weather, creating earthquakes and hurricanes, incapacitating satellites and communications, and controlling people's minds.
In 2016, US police arrested two criminals who, armed with an arsenal of firearms, intended to attack the research facility and damage the facility.
However, leaving far-reaching conspiracy theories behind, geoengineering, according to scientists themselves, may not be the most effective tool in the fight against climate change. Chemist Frank Kuitch criticized Richter's suggestions, arguing that such methods are only the elimination of symptoms, and not a cure for the disease itself.
“Geoengineering is like taking painkillers. When things go wrong, they can help, but they will not eliminate the cause of the disease and can do more harm than good. We do not know all the effects that geoengineering can give, so more research is required,”the scientist concluded.