Re: Geoengineering - Possible Ways to Counteract Global Warming

On Oct 30, 8:36 pm, BottleBob <bottl...@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Kirk Gordon wrote:

BottleBob wrote:
To All:

    In this month's (Nov. 2008) issue of Scientific American, there is
an article on proposed ways to cool the Earth.  
   Uh...  Isn't sulfuric acid in the atmosphere a big part of what's
wrong with Venus?  

Kirk:

        Yes, Venus has sulfur dioxide clouds.  But I think Venus' runaway
greenhouse effect is mainly due to it's atmosphere being predominately
CO2 AND being thick, to the extent of ~ 1,300 PSI at the surface.

=================================================================
Atmosphere of Venus:

        Venus has an extremely dense atmosphere, which consists mainly of
carbon dioxide and a small amount of nitrogen. The atmospheric mass is
93 times that of Earth's atmosphere while the pressure at the planet's
surface is about 92 times that at Earth's surface—a pressure equivalent
to that at a depth of nearly 1 kilometer under Earth's oceans. The
density at the surface is 65 kg/m³ (6.5% that of water). The enormously
CO2-rich atmosphere, along with thick clouds of sulfur dioxide,
generates the strongest greenhouse effect in the solar system,
=================================================================

And isn't water the "worst" of the so-called
greenhouse gasses, in terms of its ability to let sunlight into the
atmosphere, and then trap heat before it can escape into space?

        If the Earth didn't have ANY water vapor in the form of clouds, it's
albedo (reflecting ability) would drop and more radiation would reach
the surface, BUT...

===================================================================http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albedo

Clouds

        Clouds are another source of albedo that play into the global warming
equation. Different types of clouds have different albedo values,
theoretically ranging from a minimum of near 0% to a maximum in the
high 70s. "On any given day, about half of Earth is covered by clouds,
which reflect more sunlight than land and water. Clouds keep Earth cool
by reflecting sunlight, but they can also serve as blankets to trap
warmth."[
===================================================================

        Now what confuses the issue is that water vapor and sulfur dioxide
clouds can have the dual effect of cooling AND warming, that are
diametrically opposed.

        Perhaps the space based filtering ideas might be a more clear cut option.

--
BottleBobhttp://home.earthlink.net/~bottlbob

Bob,
I believe there is something about the size of the droplets, that
affects the albedo.
This is IIRC the concern of current "Global Dimming" studies, where
the fine particulates of jet aircraft help to create smaller more
reflective droplets, and affect "global dimming"

Interesting, apparently on 9/12 the temperature of the earth dropped
from grounding the airfleet. So the study goes.
.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Geoengineering - Possible Ways to Counteract Global Warming
    ... In this month's issue of Scientific American, there is an article on proposed ways to cool the Earth. ... Venus has sulfur dioxide clouds. ... But I think Venus' runaway greenhouse effect is mainly due to it's atmosphere being predominately CO2 AND being thick, to the extent of ~ 1,300 PSI at the surface. ...
    (alt.machines.cnc)
  • Paper: A Hazy View of Early Earth
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  • Re: Geoengineering - Possible Ways to Counteract Global Warming
    ... There it would react with oxygen, water and other molecules to form minute sulfate droplets made up of water, sulfuric acid and whatever dust, salt or other particles onto which the acid and water condense. ... In 1991 the volcanic eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines put 20 million tons of SO2 into the stratosphere, and it had all those effects: it cooled the earth by nearly one degree Fahrenheit for about a year. ... John Latham’s idea for cooling the planet is essentially to whiten existing marine clouds by lacing them with lots of ship tracks—but made in a cleaner way. ... This proposal calls for placing a sunshade at L1, the inner Lagrangian point, a million miles from the earth in the direction of the sun. From L1 a sunshade would cast an even shadow over the planet without polluting the atmosphere. ...
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