It may sound like the stuff of wacky science fiction, but a team of researchers and designers may have come up with a dramatic climate change plan.
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The concept calls for the mass refreezing of the polar areas of our planet using state-of-the-art technology.
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This will involve a technique known as a stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI) in which sand-like particles are dropped over the poles in large quantities.
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These particles are designed to combat greenhouse gases by effectively dimming the incoming sunlight which will lower the Earth’s overall temperature.
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It’s believed that such a technique may be able to slow the rate of melting across the ice caps, which will in turn slow the speed at which global sea levels are rising.
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Researchers have stated that such a project would cost roughly $11 billion annually. Not a small amount by any means, but tiny in comparison to costs associated with climate change.
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This is just one of many ideas being floated at the moment relating to the ice caps, with another proposing a giant submersible vessel capable of producing icebergs.
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Most scientists agree that within 50 years, we could effectively be without Arctic sea ice which could have devastating consequences around the world.
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Whether we start spraying the poles or building submarine iceberg makers remains to be seen, but what is clear is that our time to consider such projects is diminishing quickly.