 | Weekly SRM roundup of research papers, web posts, events, jobs, projects, podcasts, videos and much more.1. This Week’s Top SRM Highlights2. Research Papers3. Web Posts4. Job Opportunities5. Podcasts6. YouTube Videos7. Upcoming Events
Amid chemtrail myths and climate confusion, we deliver credible SRM news you can trust. Subscribe to stay informed and support our independent reporting through a paid subscription. Support This Newsletter Get 20% off a group subscription Follow us on: Twitter | Bluesky | LinkedIn | Google Group | Podcast RESEARCH PAPER: Response of Tipping Elements to Different Strategies of Stratospheric Aerosol Injection (AGU) PREPRINT: Efficacy assessment of Stratospheric Aerosol Scrubbing as a Counter Climate Intervention strategy (ESS Open Archive) NEWS ANALYSIS: Private companies have raised millions to block the sun. What could go wrong? (The Washington Post) AWARD: Diamonds, dust and television: Sandro Vattioni wins China’s “IgNobel Prize” (ETH Zurich) JOB OPPORTUNITY: Earth System Interventions Fellowship in Environmental Law and Policy 2026-2028 (UCLA) PODCAST: Is It Time to Talk About Geoengineering? (Outrage + Optimism: The Climate Podcast) VIDEO: Sunlight Reflection Methods (SRM) Part 2: Consequences (Featuring David Keith and Tiffany Shaw) (UChicago Climate Systems Engineering initiative) Read on to unpack more updates: Rethinking Geoengineering Governance Utilizing the Playing God Argument: Considerations of Knowledge, Control, and Benevolence Authors: Julian Dreiman & Brian Patrick GreenSynopsis: This analysis reframes the “playing God” critique of geoengineering using Moti Mizrahi’s interpretation, arguing it doesn’t forbid SG but highlights gaps in current governance. The authors say existing proposals lack actionable measures that ensure control, knowledge, and benevolence—the three pillars needed for responsible use. They outline practical mechanisms to embed these principles, aiming for a more robust governance system that directly addresses ethical concerns while guiding potential deployment.
Solar Geoengineering Strategies Based on Reinforcement Learning Authors: Heng Quan, Daniel D. B. Koll, Nicholas Lutsko, Janni YuvalSynopsis: A new study tests whether reinforcement learning (RL) can design smarter stratospheric aerosol injection strategies. Using an idealized climate model, an RL agent learned to adjust aerosol distributions through feedback, delivering stable, plausible SAI strategies within a few dozen simulations. It also found that optimal approaches shift depending on when SAI begins. The work offers the first proof-of-concept that RL could help optimize future geoengineering deployment.
Impacts of stratospheric aerosol injection on precipitation and winds associated with extratropical cyclones in the Southern Hemisphere Authors: João Gabriel Martins Ribeiro, Michelle Simões Reboita, Natália Machado Crespo and John MooreSynopsis: Analysis of three major SAI modeling initiatives shows that Southern Hemisphere extratropical cyclones generally weaken under SAI. Across future scenarios, cyclones produce less precipitation and have weaker 10 m winds than in no-SAI worlds, though GeoMIP/G6Sulfur shows some exceptions. Cyclone contributions to regional rainfall and wind also decline toward 2100. While models reproduce cyclone structure well today, future SAI–no-SAI differences vary by region and model. Overall, SAI moderates some warming-driven intensification.
Response of Tipping Elements to Different Strategies of Stratospheric Aerosol Injection Authors: Mengying Zhao, Long Cao, Daniele Visioni, Douglas G. MacMartinSynopsis: New CESM simulations show how different SAI strategies affect climate tipping-element risks. All approaches lower many risks, but outcomes vary: high-latitude injections better protect northern cryosphere elements, while low-latitude injections more strongly support tropical systems like the Amazon and coral reefs. Multi-objective SAI, which balances several temperature gradients, performs best overall. However, risks for the Antarctic ice sheet and Sahel greening can rise or fall depending on the injection pattern, underscoring complex trade-offs.
Building Capacity for Public Engagement on Solar Geoengineering Authors: Sikina Jinnah, Zachary Dove, Shuchi Talati, Erika Check Hayden, Alice Siu and Mahmud FarooqueSynopsis: This paper outlines how to build broad, informed public engagement on solar geoengineering. It introduces a practical toolkit—capacity-building workshops, participatory technology assessment, and Deliberative Polling—designed to help communities engage with SG’s risks, uncertainties, and governance challenges. A companion briefing book offers clear, balanced explanations of climate science, policy, SG technologies, governance, and ethics to support inclusive dialogue.
Hemispheric Contrast in Aerosol-Cloud Interactions: An Attempt for Detection and Attribution Authors: Alice Henkes, Hailing Jia, Jan Kretzschmar, Sabine Hörnig, Johannes QuaasSynopsis: A new ICON model study tests what happens if anthropogenic aerosol emissions are “flipped” between hemispheres. Shifting pollution southward and cleaning the north produces clear, detectable changes in aerosol optical depth, cloud droplet numbers, and liquid water path - strongest over land and consistent with satellite data. The hemispheric reversal drives major radiative shifts: +2.85 W/m² forcing in the Northern Hemisphere and –2.63 W/m² in the Southern Hemisphere.
Assessing the stratospheric temperature response to volcanic sulfate injections by Mt. Pinatubo: insights from the Interactive Stratospheric Aerosol Model Intercomparison Project - Preprint Authors: Katharina Perny, Timofei Sukhodolov, Ales Kuchar, Pavle Arsenovic, et al.Synopsis: New multi-model experiments using the HErSEA protocol show how uncertain stratospheric temperature responses are after major volcanic SO₂ injections like Mt. Pinatubo. While average model results match reanalyses, differences between models exceed differences in eruption size or altitude. Variations in transport, radiation, microphysics, and aerosol size drive this spread. The study urges caution when interpreting volcanic or SAI simulations based on only one or a few models.
Efficacy assessment of Stratospheric Aerosol Scrubbing as a Counter Climate Intervention strategy - Preprint Authors: Anthony Crawford Jones, Jim M. Haywood, Matthew Henry, Alistair DuffeySynopsis: A new modelling study tests “Stratospheric Aerosol Scrubbing” (SAS) as a potential way to counteract SAI. By adding coarse calcite particles to speed up aerosol growth and fallout, SAS reduced stratospheric aerosol levels by 30–40% and weakened SAI’s cooling effect by ~30%. The results suggest SAS could partially offset SAI impacts, but the approach needs further investigation.
Share Solar Geoengineering Updates Solar Geoengineering Updates - Monthly Solar Geoengineering Updates (November’2025) Phys.Org - Seeding jet exhaust with ice-nucleating particles could reduce aviation’s climate impact SG Deliberation - Solar Radiation Modification Governance Brief for UNEA-7 Earth.Org - Why Solar Geoengineering Research Is Now a Moral Imperative? Peter’s Substack - SAI, Pinatubo, and the Missing Conversation About Food Security Plane Sight News - A Look at the Changing SAI Airscape Planetary Sunshade Foundation - Governing Sunlight Reflection: A Review of Global Efforts Warming Warrior - Thermodynamic Geoengineering: The Third Pillar of Climate Intervention Just Security - As Solar Geoengineering Enters its Startup Phase, Governments Must Address Emerging Security Risks Inevitable & Obvious - A Climate Goal for the Overshoot Era The Washington Post - Private companies have raised millions to block the sun. What could go wrong? Peter’s Substack - How Global Dimming Helped Cause the Sahel Famine – And Why Its Reversal Is Now Superheating the Atlantic DSG - Africa’s High-Stakes Discourse on SRM: Risks, Responsibilities, and Regional Realities The Liminal Space - Building Engagement in a Contested Climate Field ETH Zurich - Diamonds, dust and television: Sandro Vattioni wins China’s “IgNobel Prize” Peter’s Substack - An Albedo Accord: Why Cooling the Planet Must Come Before Everything Else Vermont Daily Chronicle - Here comes the sun—or not? EBSCOB - The Great Barrier Reef, Collapsing? Solar Geoengineering Updates is a reader-supported publication. To support my work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Get 20% off a group subscription Research Associate in Cloud Physics at Imperial College London | South Kensington Campus “High altitude cirrus clouds have a significant warming effect on the climate, but it is possible that interaction particulates (known as aerosols) could reduce the amount of high clouds and cool the climate. Climate models disagree about the size of this cooling due to a poor understanding of the present-day properties of high clouds. We are looking for a research associate to combine models and observations to reduce this uncertainty and better constrain the past and future impact of humans on the climate.”
Policy Engagement Manager, Africa at The Degrees Initiative | Remote, based in either the UK or Africa & Events Manager at The Degrees Initiative | Remote within the United Kingdom “The Degrees Initiative is a UK-based NGO that strengthens the capacity of the Global South to evaluate solar radiation modification (SRM), a controversial proposal for reducing some impacts of climate change by reflecting sunlight away from the Earth.”
Earth System Interventions Fellowship in Environmental Law and Policy 2026-2028 at UCLA | Deadline: 01 February 2026 “UCLA School of Law’s Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment is now accepting applications for the Earth System Interventions Fellowship in Environmental Law and Policy for the academic years 2026-2028. This is a full-time two-year fellowship beginning as soon as July 2026. Within the Emmett Institute’s project on the law and policy of earth system interventions, the fellow will conduct research and analysis on international and domestic legal and policy issues related to proposed climate-altering interventions such as solar radiation modification (SRM). The fellow will also assist with project and Institute activities such as conferences, workshops, and expert working groups.”
Jacinda Ardern and… Is It Time to Talk About Geoengineering? | Outrage + Optimism: The Climate Podcast  | Jacinda Ardern and… Is It Time to Talk About Geoengineering? Outrage + Optimism: The Climate Podcast 47:59 |
“This week, hosts Tom Rivett Carnac and Paul Dickinson delve into the rapidly emerging - and faintly surreal - world of solar geoengineering.Politico journalist Karl Mathiesen joins us to unpack his investigation into Stardust, a VC-backed startup claiming it’s ready to spray particles into the stratosphere. Karl explains why this technology is suddenly attracting serious money, why scientists still have major questions about safety and side effects, and how in some places, the global regulatory landscape is almost nonexistent.And from technological disruption to political stability, former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, reflects on the leadership we need. She’s unflinchingly honest about why so many politicians still choose “fear and blame” over long-term action, and why climate remains New Zealand’s “nuclear-free moment.” A test of political character as much as policy. Her argument is hopeful: people, she insists, are ahead of their politics.As we march towards the end of 2025, these conversations map the terrain of 2026: technologies racing ahead, governance lagging behind, and a public increasingly hungry for leaders willing to act with integrity. If you want to understand where the climate fight is really heading this episode is essential.”
The Tragedy of Stratospheric Aerosol Injection—w/ Dr. Shuchi Talati of The Alliance for Just Deliberation on Solar Geoengineering | Reversing Climate Change  | 376: The Tragedy of Stratospheric Aerosol Injection—w/ Dr. Shuchi Talati of The Alliance for Just Deliberation on Solar Geoengineering Reversing Climate Change 1:21:57 |
“Long a pariah climate solution, Stratospheric Aerosol Injection (SAI) is having its mainstream moment. As the climate movement ponders the planet’s deep overshoot, more conversations about geoengineering, solar radiation management, global cooling, etc. are taking place in the open.Moreover, for-profit entities are raising venture rounds, with Stardust recently announcing a $60M Series A to commercialize their approach to SAI. This moment is feeling genuinely new, and it feels this way to today’s guest Dr. Shuchi Talati of The Alliance for Just Deliberation on Solar Geoengineering too.While I believe we should do the research and have the governance ready for possible future deployment lest it be done in a much less responsible way (I do not enjoy writing these words one single bit), I am finding it hard to accept its use as anything less than tragedy. Some felt this way about carbon removal, and I have greater sympathy for that feeling now too. The owl of Minerva flies only at dusk...Is SAI an instance of brave humans deploying life-saving technology? Or Promethean hubris for which we should keep our livers guarded? How much should the profit motive influence SAI deployment, if at all? I don’t have all of the answers—nor pretend to–but I can point you to the emotional and spiritual core of it that helps me make sense of being a historical actor with agency at this moment in time.”
Cynthia Scharf ‘Climate Tech - The Technologies of Desperation’ | The New Abnormal  | Cynthia Scharf 'Climate Tech - The Technologies of Desperation' The New Abnormal 49:13 |
“This episode of ‘The New Abnormal’ podcast features Cynthia Scharf, a Senior Fellow at the Centre for Future Generations, a European think tank, leading their work on Climate Interventions. Issue of trust, global equity, behavioural psychology, archetypes and narrative are key to their work.”
Contrails are not ‘chemtrails’ and are, in fact, a normal weather occurrence | ABC News  “In this episode of Climate A-to-Zee, ABC News Chief Meteorologist and Chief Climate Correspondent Ginger Zee debunks the “chemtrails” conspiracy theory by explaining why aircraft contrails are a normal occurrence when certain weather conditions are in play.”
A Climate Advisor: Sir David King’s Journey | Climate Emergency Forum  “This Climate Emergency Forum episode features an in-depth conversation with Sir David King, one of the world’s most influential climate scientists and diplomats, recorded during COP30 in Belém, Brazil. Herb Simmens, Dr. Peter Carter, and Paul Beckwith explore Sir David’s “four Rs” framework—Reduce emissions, Remove greenhouse gases, Repair the climate, and build Resilience—and why he now believes we have moved beyond the point where emissions cuts alone can secure a safe future. From accelerating polar ice loss to growing extremes in heat and weather, he explains the scale of the crisis and the urgent need for both rapid decarbonization and targeted climate repair.”
Good COP, Bad COP: First reflections on COP30 | Centre for Climate Repair  “Good COP, Bad COP brings you an expert panel to discuss the highs and the lows of the world’s biggest climate conference. After the 30th “Conference of the Parties” (COP), we’ll ask: what really happened? What was agreed, and what was left unspoken? And after all these years, what do we do next?”
Climate Systems Engineering in Context (Featuring David Keith) | UChicago Climate Systems Engineering initiative  “David Keith discusses the field of climate systems engineering and speculates about its future.”
Sunlight Reflection Methods (SRM) Part 2: Consequences (Featuring David Keith and Tiffany Shaw) | UChicago Climate Systems Engineering initiative  “David Keith and Tiffany Shaw review the expected climate responses to SRM, potential side effects, and what can be learned from past aerosol pollution, highlighting the limits and uncertainties of experiments.”
Paul Gambill New Initiatives to Support Comprehensive Global Heating Approaches | Healthy Planet Action Coalition  “Paul Gambill discusses his work on educating the public to understand that sunlight reflection methods will be needed in addition to emissions reductions and greenhouse gas removals to address the global heating emergency.”
Earth Observations in the Era of Climate Overshoot with Ben Poulter | International Space Science Institute  “Rising greenhouse-gas emissions from human activities are causing rapid changes to Earth’s climate. Despite efforts to mitigate emissions to limit warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius, changes in temperature appear to be heading for a temporary overshoot with unknown temperature peak and duration, and impacts to the Earth system. Climate overshoot, i.e., temporarily exceeding a temperature limit, is a relatively new concept, and the associated impacts, mitigation and adaptation needs are an active area of research. Current space-based observing systems to monitor the land, ocean, cryosphere and atmosphere were designed during a phase of relatively stationary climate conditions or with the assumption that climate policies will stabilize temperatures in a fairly linear way. The characteristics of climate overshoot require rethinking and reevaluating satellite mission requirements related to temporal revisit, spatial resolution, spectral range, signal to noise, and overpass time. For example, abrupt permafrost thaw in high-latitudes, greenhouse-gas emissions from warming tropical wetlands, rapid glacier melt, ocean heatwaves and impacts on biogeochemistry, have unique signatures that current observing constellations will need to track for impacts, reversibility and stability. Additionally, an increasing number of climate intervention efforts to avoid or minimize climate overshoot, linked to carbon dioxide removal, methane removal, and solar radiation management, have their own set of specific monitoring requirements. Advances in technology, new partnerships between public, private and commercial organizations, and an expansion of computing power and algorithms have potential to keep pace with expanding observing requirements.”
Are emissions cuts on track to avoid catastrophic impacts? | SRM360  “SRM360 hosted a live discussion on emissions cuts a decade since the Paris Agreement, how emissions might develop, and what role solar geoengineering (SRM) could play.”
Anni Pokela - How to change our climate reality, ATLAS25 | Operaatio Arktis  “ATLAS25 was organised to bridge scientific understanding on Earth System Tipping Points (ESTP) with strategic policy-making including approaches to climate intervention research. The aim was to elevate Nordic leadership and cooperation in ESTP risk management as an issue of comprehensive security. While this was an ambitious undertaking, we made important progress. The conference drew 143 participants, with 215 attending the Think Corner session and hundreds viewing the livestream. The recording of this session has already sparked a lot of discussion. Media coverage on ATLAS25, our speakers and messages has had a reach of millions of people through major news outlets like Helsingin Sanomat, Yle news, MTV news, Hufvudstadsbladet, and New story, bringing critical understanding of Earth System Tipping Points to wider public attention. Engaging policymakers more widely in addressing ESTPs requires continuous efforts, although the widespread media coverage has sparked discourse among many policy-makers.”
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