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AGU: Journal of Geophysical Research, Atmospheres

 

Keywords

  • geoengineering
  • volcanic eruptions

Index Terms

  • Atmospheric Processes: Climate change and variability
  • Atmospheric Processes: Middle atmosphere dynamics
  • Atmospheric Composition and Structure: Volcanic effects
  • Atmospheric Processes: Precipitation
  • Global Change: Regional climate change
Abstract
Cited By (39)
 

Abstract

JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH, VOL. 113, D16101, 15 PP., 2008
doi:10.1029/2008JD010050

Regional climate responses to geoengineering with tropical and Arctic SO2 injections

Alan Robock

Department of Environmental Sciences, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA

Luke Oman

Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

Georgiy L. Stenchikov

Department of Environmental Sciences, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA

Anthropogenic stratospheric aerosol production, so as to reduce solar insolation and cool Earth, has been suggested as an emergency response to geoengineer the planet in response to global warming. While volcanic eruptions have been suggested as innocuous examples of stratospheric aerosols cooling the planet, the volcano analog actually argues against geoengineering because of ozone depletion and regional hydrologic and temperature responses. To further investigate the climate response, here we simulate the climate response to both tropical and Arctic stratospheric injection of sulfate aerosol precursors using a comprehensive atmosphere-ocean general circulation model, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Goddard Institute for Space Studies ModelE. We inject SO2 and the model converts it to sulfate aerosols, transports the aerosols and removes them through dry and wet deposition, and calculates the climate response to the radiative forcing from the aerosols. We conduct simulations of future climate with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change A1B business-as-usual scenario both with and without geoengineering and compare the results. We find that if there were a way to continuously inject SO2 into the lower stratosphere, it would produce global cooling. Tropical SO2 injection would produce sustained cooling over most of the world, with more cooling over continents. Arctic SO2 injection would not just cool the Arctic. Both tropical and Arctic SO2 injection would disrupt the Asian and African summer monsoons, reducing precipitation to the food supply for billions of people. These regional climate anomalies are but one of many reasons that argue against the implementation of this kind of geoengineering.

Received 2 March 2008; accepted 9 June 2008; published 16 August 2008.

Citation: Robock, A., L. Oman, and G. L. Stenchikov (2008), Regional climate responses to geoengineering with tropical and Arctic SO2 injections, J. Geophys. Res., 113, D16101, doi:10.1029/2008JD010050.

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