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Letter: Super sunscreen

Published 29 April 2000

From D. C. Ferrier

Is this a totally daft idea? Presumably global warming could be reduced if
some Earth-bound solar radiation were dispersed. Equip a spacecraft with the
means to blow bubbles from a suitable material. Place it in a yearly synchronous
orbit around the Earth (about 2 million kilometres radius) and locate it between
the Sun and Earth. I have no knowledge about blowing bubbles in space but
speculate that in a vacuum and under zero gravity conditions one could create
some whoppers, which one would need to do to create a dispersal area of a
reasonable fraction of the projected area of our planet.

Tiverton, Devon

Issue no. 2236 published 29 April 2000

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