MIT researchers are exploring a radical solution to reverse global warming, by using a raft of "space bubbles" to reflect sunlight away from our planet.
As the global temperature rises, the primary solution to reduce our emissions is not working as the world is not yet ready to abandon fossil fuels.
A group of MIT researchers are exploring solar geoengineering as a solution to global warming. The idea is to cool the Earth by reflecting solar radiation away from it.
The plan is to place a bubble shield at Lagrangian Point 1, a point in space where the gravitational pull of the Earth and the sun is in equilibrium, so that the shield can remain in orbit there permanently.
The shield would be about the size of Brazil, and the bubbles possibly made out of silicon.
The MIT team claims that since the bubbles would be almost a million miles away from Earth, this approach wouldn’t be as risky as methods that directly involve Earth's atmosphere.
The radical plan to use solar geoengineering is still just a proposal. The MIT team is currently looking for funding to continue its research, in case we need a Plan B.
