Is it time to try geoengineering?

Science Weekly

The Guardian

Science

4.2 • 938 Ratings

🗓️ 15 May 2025

⏱️ 17 minutes

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Summary

Geoengineering, the controversial set of techniques that aim to deliberately alter the Earth’s climate system, may be inching a step closer to reality with the announcement that UK scientists will be conducting real-world experiments in the coming years. To understand what’s happening, Ian Sample is joined by the Guardian environment editor Damian Carrington. Damian explains what the experiments will entail and why scientists are so divided on whether pursuing this research is a good idea. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

Transcript

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0:53.5	that starts new cancer cures, so that in the future
0:57.0	will reach a day when no life is cut short by cancer.
1:01.0	But we can't cure what we don't understand.
1:04.0	So Worldwide Cancer Research encourages scientists to ask big questions, like, why does the heart not get cancer?
1:13.0	Can AI help us find new cancer treatments? Could skin cancer be treated with a vaccine?
1:19.1	Cure starters like you are searching for the answers to cancer. Search Curestarter to find out more. In June 1991, Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines began to erupt.
1:43.3	As well as huge gobs of ash and magma,
1:46.0	Pinatubo released millions of tonnes of sulphur dioxide.
1:51.0	As the gas dispersed through the stratosphere,
1:54.0	it combined with moisture to form sulfates.
1:57.0	And sulfate particles have a special property.
2:02.4	They reflect sunlight.
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	...

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