In March 2017, two Harvard professors, David Keith and Frank Keutsch, discussed plans to conduct the first solar geoengineering experiment in the stratosphere at a small summit in Washington, DC. Solar geoengineering involves spraying certain particles high above the planet to reflect sunlight back into space to counteract climate change. Critics argue that manipulating the planet’s climate system is too dangerous to study in the real world.
However, concerns about the potential negative impacts of solar geoengineering were raised by critics who opposed the proposed experiment. After a decade of planning, Harvard recently announced the termination of the project. The failure of this experiment raises questions about the boundaries researchers have when exploring controversial subjects.
Meanwhile, economic pressures are also affecting nuclear reactors worldwide. The average age of nuclear reactors in power plants worldwide is increasing, with some countries having older reactors than others. In Europe, nearly 90% of reactors are over 30 years old. Economic pressures have led to the shutdown of older, especially smaller, reactors in areas with cheaper sources of electricity such as natural gas. However, older nuclear reactors may still have a significant amount of operational life left despite these challenges.
