Scientist 'Terrified' About Experiments He Himself Created to Curb Global Warming

A British scientist whose research focuses on projects that could alter Earth's environment in drastic ways in an effort to curb or mitigate the effects of global warming admitted that the idea itself "terrifies" him.

"Whilst it is clear that temperatures could be reduced during deployment, the potential for misstep is considerable," Dr. Matthew Watson with the University of Bristol told the Daily Mail Online. "By identifying risks, we hope to contribute to the evidence base around geoengineering that will determine whether deployment, in the face of the threat of climate change, has the capacity to do more good than harm."

Workers cover the glacier with oversized plastic sheets on the peak of Germany's highest mountain Zugspitze near Garmisch-Partenkirchen, southern Germany. The sheets are meant to keep the glacier from melting during the summer months. It's Plan B in the fight against climate change: cooling the planet by sucking heat-trapping CO2 from the air or reflecting sunlight back into space. The U.N.’s expert panel on climate change was under pressure from both sides as it considered whether geoengineering should be part of the toolkit that governments use to keep global warming in check. (AP/Matthias Schrader)

Still, he told the U.K. publication that it would be "unethical" not to try to mitigate climate change if such technology such technology were available and ever needed.

"If we ever deploy these technologies it will be the closest indication yet that we've failed as planetary stewards," Watson said, according to the Daily Mail.

To the BBC, Watson said, "We don't like the idea but we're more convinced than ever that we have to research it."

According to the university's website, Watson's work specifically seeks to understand how volcanic plumes and clouds affect other environmental factors. Watson was involved with the now-cancelled SPICE (Stratospheric Particle Injection for Climate Engineering) project, which was "investigating the effectiveness of Solar Radiation Management," a concept that "involves offsetting the effects of greenhouse gas increases by causing the Earth to absorb less radiation from the Sun." Specifically, the project would involve putting particles into the atmosphere that could deflect some of the sun's rays that cause global warming.

Watson presented some of his recent findings about geoengineering with fellow scientists at the Royal Society in London earlier this week.

“It’s been a roller coaster, for sure,” Watson told Science Insider about the research.

In 2012, one of the SPICE project experiments was cancelled due to various concerns.

“I can’t explain how difficult it was,” Watson told Science Insider, noting though that he's still proud of what has been done thus far and hopes other scientists can build on it.

At this point, Science Insider reported that Watson doesn't have the funding to continue with his project.

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