2024-08-01 06:10:59
Washington: Global warming is a global problem. Israeli scientists have come up with a unique way to deal with it. Scientist Prof. Yoram Rosen is raising $15 million to develop a prototype of a revolutionary space sunshade. The goal of this cutting-edge project is to reduce the effects of climate change on a large scale through this ‘space umbrella’. Rosen, a researcher at the Israel Institute of Technology’s Asher Space Research Institute, has envisioned deploying a 2.5 million tonne sunshade in space at a distance of 1.5 million kilometres from Earth. This sunshade will be designed in such a way that it can block 2 percent of the sun’s radiation. This sunshade can reduce global temperatures by 1.5 degrees Celsius within 12 to 18 months. Throughout human history, there has generally been a balance between the sun heating the Earth and the heat the planet sends into space. However, since the industrial revolution, increasing emissions of greenhouse gases by mankind have limited the Earth’s ability to keep itself cool.
How will it work?
Professor Yoram Rosen and his team envision a giant sunshell that would slow the Earth’s warming. The concept relies on launching a reflective, opaque sunshell into a stable orbit. It will remain locked with the Earth as it orbits the Sun. The sunshell would be made of thin, reflective material and its location is intended to minimize the effects of gravity and the solar wind. Despite the ambitious scale of the project, Rosen emphasizes that the initial goal is to build and test a blackboard-sized prototype.
How much will it cost?
This prototype will help validate the technology before full-scale implementation. The project could cost up to $30 trillion to complete. Which is more than the US GDP. But it is less than the estimated economic loss from global warming by the middle of the century. Sufficient money is needed to build the prototype. He said, ‘It will not be like a cloud coming between the sun and you. Rather it will be the difference between 12 noon and 2 pm.’