Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
Elon Musk has once again sparked a fierce debate — this time over his claim that a network of satellites could help control Earth’s temperature.
On Monday, Elon Musk posted on X (formerly Twitter) that he wanted to deploy a “large, solar-powered AI satellite constellation” to help curb global warming.
The SpaceX and Tesla founder said the system could make “tiny adjustments” to the amount of solar energy reaching Earth, effectively cooling the planet.
“A large, solar-powered AI satellite constellation would be able to prevent global warming by making tiny adjustments to how much solar energy reaches Earth,” Musk wrote.
Skeptical? Well, you’re not the only one.
Expert warnings
Lili Fuhr, who leads the fossil economy program at the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), told the Daily Mail that Musk’s concept could have catastrophic implications.
“Solar geoengineering is inherently unpredictable and could further destabilize our already fragile climate system,” she said.
Fuhr warned that deploying such technology “would threaten the lives and rights of billions of people,” adding that it could not be stopped safely once begun.
“If it were ever deployed, it would not be possible to pause or halt it without risking rapid temperature spikes and an acceleration of global heating,” she explained.
“These highly speculative technologies are a dangerous distraction from solving the climate crisis and should be taken off the table for good,” Fuhr concluded.
Scientific caution
Professor Sammie Buzzard, a glaciologist and climate scientist at Northumbria University, shared similar concerns.
She told the Daily Mail that Musk’s proposal “shouldn’t be up to one individual or one country to decide the climate for another,” warning of “unintended consequences from untested methods.”
Buzzard said that beyond the scientific unknowns, there were significant environmental and ethical concerns.
She added that any such project “would have global consequences that would not be equal everywhere,” emphasizing the need for international agreement before any action.
Elon Musk has yet to respond to the criticism.
This article is made and published by Jens Asbjørn Bogen, who may have used AI in the preparation
