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1,500-Ship Fleet Proposed To Fight Climate Change

Posted by timothy on from the sponsored-by-viagra dept.

Roland Piquepaille writes "According to UK and US researchers, it should be possible to fight the global warming effects associated with an increase of dioxide levels by using autonomous cloud-seeding ships to spray salt water into the air. This project would require the deployment of a worldwide fleet of 1,500 unmanned ships to cool the Earth even if the level of carbon dioxide doubled. These 300-tonne ships 'would be powered by the wind, but would not use conventional sails. Instead they would be fitted with a number of 20 m-high, 2.5 m-diameter cylinders known as Flettner rotors. The researchers estimate that such ships would cost between £1m and £2m each. This translates to a US$2.65 to 5.3 billion total cost for the ships only."

6 of 692 comments (clear)

  1. Re:A Bad Doctor by bartyboy · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    If we took this money and invested it into researching and implementing green alternatives to our current fossil-fuel infrastructure instead, more progress would be made in the long run.

    Yeah, how about China and India do their part, too? Why is the onus on the West to cut back on greenhouse emissions while the Far East countries accelerate their output?

  2. Re:That's what? by OeLeWaPpErKe · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    The real issue environuts will have with these ships is that they're not "natural". After all what nature does is "right".

    (does that include a puma killing your daughter, aliquis, just to see how she squirms, or to teach her cubs to kill ? There is hardly any more natural an act)

    Artificially influencing the weater will be very unnatural and thus the gods of gaia and the goracle will not be appeased.

    Besides, the goracle currently has gotten (partial) control over the energy infrastructure of the world. You don't seriously think he will give that up without a fight ?

  3. How Much Fuel for those Ships by wooferhound · · Score: -1, Flamebait

    I wonder if each ship would be able to cancel out its own carbon emissions from Burned Fuel, and of course multiply that by 1500 ships.

    --
    We are Dead Stars looking back Up at the Sky
  4. Re:That's what? by Hurricane78 · · Score: -1, Flamebait

    Yeah sure. Seriously?...those who die because they can't survive without fossil fuel... don't they deserve it, for being that stupid?
    We (as in "humanity") survived worse things. Nobody will die without fossil fuel. Get over it.

    Or in short: Why am I answering an AC again? ;)

    --
    Any sufficiently advanced intelligence is indistinguishable from stupidity.
  5. Re:That's what? by aplusjimages · · Score: -1, Flamebait

    John McCain is that you? Is this your new platform? Americans will die without fossil fuels. You can't die from lack of fossil fuels, but you can die from global warming.

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    Can I bum a sig?
  6. Re:That's what? by sg_oneill · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    The massive pumps to keep the rising ocean at bay will need shit loads of power. And for that we need COAL!

    Billions will die without it!

    --
    Excuse the Unicode crap in my posts. That's an apostrophe, and slashdot is busted.