Imagine this possibility. In the not-so-distant future, humans will improve weather modification tools such as cloud seeding techniques, and the weather itself will not only be predictable but controllable. In such a scenario, corporations with lax government oversight would have the greatest control over the environment, essentially turning the weather itself into a luxury good. Glamorous ski resorts are using their control to offer their customers a year-round snow vacation. Rainfall, once left to nature, can now be purchased on demand.
These are just a few of the data-driven science fiction scenarios our experts drafted as part of their planning. recent papers It was published in the magazine Global sustainability. The paper, led by Assistant Professor Patrick Keyes of Colorado State University, asked international experts on global water issues how he and his team are impacting the water cycle in the atmosphere today. We asked him to analyze the research he had compiled and bring it to life through science fiction stories and essays. . They believe that an explanatory and narrative approach can help provide a clearer picture of issues that are often buried in data and quantitative literature.
Experts created 10 different scenarios with catchy titles such as “We Are God” and “Too Much Rain in Paradise.” In the first example, the authors focused on a speech by a future scientist who talks about the hypothetical dangers of climate modification. Another scenario imagines a world in which politicians struggling to maintain an advantage during elections bring up weather control as a way to rally electoral support. Other scenarios envision a future in which the weather itself is privatized and rainfall can be sold to the highest bidder.
In the privatized rain example, a fictitious rain provider named “AnyWeather” sends a note to its customers stating that their request for “spring rain service” conflicts with another, presumably wealthy, customer who has priority. We will notify you that your application has been rejected. they. Another scenario focuses on a fictional history podcast that describes a strange and unpleasant fog that appears on the skyline of Lagos, Nigeria. According to the podcast, this haze is a byproduct of a geoengineering approach called cloud condensation cores.
“Stories are everywhere and an essential part of human life,” Keys said in a statement. “You can see that it’s different from the graphs in research papers. These tools allow us to explore how people feel and react to these kinds of changes.”
Researchers used narrative to bring data to life
Humans are already influencing weather patterns in ways that are hard to imagine. Researchers note that land use, pollution and climate change are all influencing where clouds form and how much rainfall they receive. Keyes and his fellow researchers combine data collected from real diary entries with the speculative curiosity of science fiction to discover what the world will look like after humanity’s years of efforts to modify the atmosphere. produced a variety of different senators to investigate.
The researchers first collected text abstracts from journal articles discussing human impacts on the water cycle. Ideas from these summaries were divided into themes based on common economic principles. Global water experts were then presented with the topic and asked to come up with hypothetical scenarios. The forms of the stories vary, some remain typical of his science fiction stories, while others come through fictionalized diaries and speeches.
Keys then contacted an artist named Fabio Comi to create illustrations to accompany the story. In one of his images, employees of his cloud seeding company appear to be taking measurements and collecting data near a ski resort. Another image shows a quadrupedal robot the size of a skyscraper walking across a field and firing cloud-dispersing missiles into the sky. Various small drones fly around while scientists observe from afar. Although evocative, the story and images aren’t just meant to pique the reader’s curiosity. Keyes believes their explanatory power could help inform public policy debates.
“These scenarios have the power to raise interesting questions about policy, regulation and enforcement, about what they might look like,” Keyes said. “This approach also helps us realize some aspects that we don’t pay attention to and understand everything better.”
Cloud seeding and other climate manipulation tactics are already in place to promote rainfall and, in some cases, combat smog. At least eight states in the United States Exploring cloud seeding Especially as a potential tool in response to years of extreme drought. However, these efforts are still in their early stages. A hypothetical scenario is presented based on the data. global sustainability These papers offer a glimpse into the markedly different paths that government and private industry can take when using these tools. Each of those scenarios is determined in part by policy decisions and economic frameworks made years before the sci-fi senators developed their policies.
For now, critics argue, relying solely on geoengineering tricks to address climate change platforms remains more fiction than science. Cloud His seeding currently gives only moderate results and is only possible in certain cases. Limited environmental conditions are met. If global warming due to climate change continues, there is a risk that the probability that these conditions will be met will decrease.some scientists as well Pushed back against other efforts like brightness of ocean clouds, cites limited research on the limited long-term effects of this technique. Some warn that even if these measures do turn out to be helpful, they still are. Does not work as a substitute for first aid To fundamentally reduce greenhouse gas emissions and dependence on fossil fuels.
