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James Fleming STS Program, Colby College jfleming@colby American Geophysical Union

"On the Possibilities of Climate Control" in 1962: Harry Wexler on Geoengineering and Ozone Destruction. James Fleming STS Program, Colby College jfleming@colby.edu American Geophysical Union Dec. 14, 2007 Text at http://www.colby.edu/sts/agu2007wexler.doc.

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James Fleming STS Program, Colby College jfleming@colby American Geophysical Union

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  1. "On the Possibilities of Climate Control" in 1962: Harry Wexler on Geoengineering and Ozone Destruction • James Fleming • STS Program, Colby College • jfleming@colby.edu • American Geophysical Union • Dec. 14, 2007 • Text at http://www.colby.edu/sts/agu2007wexler.doc

  2. Wexler and C.G. Rossby, Woods Hole, 1956

  3. Air mass and frontal analysis

  4. Radiosonde and ground tracking station

  5. RADAR

  6. Atmospheric Nuclear Testing

  7. Bumper V-2 and WAC Corporal, 24 July 1950

  8. Wexler (L) with Von Neumann, Charney and others, 1954

  9. TIROS 1 cloud images 1960

  10. Wexler on skis in Little America, 1 Feb 1957

  11. Wexler in the Oval Office

  12. Wexler and V.A. Bugaev in Geneva, 19 Mar 1962

  13. On the possibilities of climate control, 1962

  14. Damage to Stratospheric Ozone Inadvertent 1. Increased pollution from rocket exhaust. 2. Near-space experiments could go awry, e.g. unknown risks of Operation Argus (1958), Project West Ford (1961), and Project Highwater (1962). Purposeful 1. In 1934 S. Chapman proposed making a temporary “hole in the ozone layer” for the benefit of astronomers. 2. Possible military interest in waging geophysical warfare by attacking the ozone layer over a rival nation.

  15. Wexler 1962: prevent all O3 from forming

  16. Br2 --> 2 Br in sunlight destroys O3 --> O2 + BrO (Wexler Papers 14)

  17. Stratospheric cooling of 80 oCManabe and Möller (left), Wexler (right)

  18. Wexler’s “Rosetta Stone” note linking Chapman, Wulf, rocket fuel, and ozone destroying reactions triggered by chorine and bromine catalysts.

  19. [Climate control] can best be classified as “interesting hypothetical exercises” until the consequences of tampering with large scale atmospheric events can be assessed in advance. Most such schemes that have been advanced would require colossal engineering feats and contain the inherent risk of irremediable harm to our planet or side effects counterbalancing the possible short-term benefits -- Harry Wexler 1962

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