• Question: Does the albedo of a surface have a significant role in the effects of climate change?

    Asked by Luke.N on 14 Jun 2023.
    • Photo: John Grasmeder

      John Grasmeder answered on 14 Jun 2023:

      I understand that it does. Darker surfaces (low albedo) abosorb more energy as heat than lighter ones. That’s why the melting of the snow and ice at the north and south poles is starting to have a more dramatic effect on climate change, and I suspect it will accelerate.

    • Photo: Amy Stockwell

      Amy Stockwell answered on 14 Jun 2023:

      There was a news report 2 years ago which suggests that it might. The headline is ‘whitest ever paint could help cool heating earth study shows’. This is partly because the white paint can reflect infrared energy back into space and partly because it keeps the buildings cooler so less air conditioning is used. I don’t know if it is being used or if it is still in the lab stage.
      https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/apr/15/whitest-ever-paint-could-help-cool-heating-earth-study-shows

    • Photo: Ferran Brosa Planella

      Ferran Brosa Planella answered on 15 Jun 2023:

      Here is another good reference from the Norwegian Polar Institute: https://www.npolar.no/en/fact/albedo/

    • Photo: Alexander De Bruin

      Alexander De Bruin answered on 16 Jun 2023:

      It does, though it’s not an easy problem to solve. It’s actually the beginning point in several post-apocolyptic science fiction stories (The Matrix and Snowpiercer come to mind), where we decide to change how reflective the planet is and end up causing e.g. eternal winter! So it’s a concept I would say we need to be very careful with!

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