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A new study in Nature [Ed-Abstract only for non-subscribers, but see below.] predicts that climate warming will be 15% greater than previous high estimates have predicted. This new study suggests that humans need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions more than previously expected and more than the Paris Agreement calls for. This study was based on analyzing the earth's "energy budget" (absorption and re-emission of radiation) and inputting that into a number of different climate models.
Also covered in more detail in Phys.org and in the Guardian.
The researchers focused on comparing model projections and observations of the spatial and seasonal patterns of how energy flows from Earth to space. Interestingly, the models that best simulate the recent past of these energy exchanges between the planet and its surroundings tend to project greater-than-average warming in the future.
"Our results suggest that it doesn't make sense to dismiss the most-severe global warming projections based on the fact that climate models are imperfect in their simulation of the current climate," Brown said. "On the contrary, if anything, we are showing that model shortcomings can be used to dismiss the least-severe projections."
(Score: 2) by Azuma Hazuki on Friday December 08 2017, @09:00PM (1 child)
Thorium! Shitloads of modular thorium reactors, something as sealed and hermetic as a spaceborne RTG, one underground every 5 square city blocks or so, providing power. Replace entire unit every 20 years or so at worst.
Meanwhile, concentrating solar plants in places that can provide the light demand, like, say, Saudi Arabia and the US southwest.
We can do this. We lack the will.
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
(Score: 1) by ElizabethGreene on Sunday December 10 2017, @06:09AM
I like Thorium reactors, but we live in a dirty bomb world. I don't see us being able to do largely distributed nuclear microgeneration because of that.
InB4 Thorium reactors yield no dirty bombs, Thorium reactors have a number of radioactive decay products. The nice thing about them is they all have nice short half lives. They are still plenty long enough to cause havoc on a major metro, even if the actual threat is small.