OceanVapor
For my 2023-2024 i2 project, I decided to dive into marine cloud brightening as a temporary solution for warming oceans. By creating brighter clouds on the marine layer, sunlight could be reflected away from the ocean. By reflecting sunlight away from the ocean, the ocean would become temporarily cooler. My project started with the initial goals of researching whether marine cloud brightening could be 1. An efficient, carbon negative or neutral method of cooling the ocean and 2. Whether cloud brightening devices could be produced for everyday vessels to use. I found that marine cloud brightening can be an effective solution for reducing ocean temperatures while also offsetting carbon emissions. However, in order to have a significant impact on the ocean below, the amount of water and salt needed to brighten clouds requires large, dedicated vessels. Therefore, while marine cloud brightening is an effective way of cooling the oceans, it cannot be mass applied to most vessels, and instead is confined to more dedicated ships.
