Removing Carbon Dioxide From the Atmosphere Could Not Reverse Climate Change Damages, Study Suggests

Since the Industrial Revolution, humans have released carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, more than the amount that natural processes can remove. As the concentration of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere increases, the average global temperature also increases. Experts consider carbon dioxide the major greenhouse gas contributing to the climate change we are currently experiencing.

Companies have applied various strategies to mitigate the effects of climate change, such as removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Despite the success of new technologies in filtering CO2 out of the air, there are debates about whether this approach can reverse the damage brought by air pollution.

Is Carbon Dioxide Removal Effective?

A study was conducted by a group of scientists focusing on the effects of carbon dioxide emission on the atmospheric circulation pattern known as the Hadley cell. Led by postdoctoral researcher Seo-Yeon Kim from Seoul National University, the team analyzed the possible outcome of humans will continue polluting the planet before finding a way to remove CO2 emissions from the atmosphere.

The result of the study suggests that sucking carbon dioxide out of the Earth's atmosphere cannot undo all the harmful effects of climate change. This means limiting air pollution now is more important than waiting for companies to clean it up later. However, ongoing advancements in direct air capture technology offer a glimpse of hope for the future, providing potential strategies to actively remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and contribute to long-term environmental sustainability.

Kim and her colleagues made a model of the aftermath of the concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere will continue to increase by one percent annually for the next 140 years. After increasing that concentration fourfold, they modeled the possible outcome if the amount of carbon dioxide was reduced at the same rate over the same time period.

The Hadley cell is expected to contract where the borders are brought away from the poles back to their previous spot. However, the model showed a difference in the impact of sucking carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere in the Northern and Southern hemispheres.

Surprisingly, the northern edge of the Hadley cell shifted further south from its original location, exceeding the desired target. On the other hand, the southern border of the Hadley cell moved much more slowly to the point that it did not return to its starting position. This means that things will eventually return to normal in a couple of centuries, but at present, humans and wildlife will have to deal with the consequences of global warming.

What is Hadley Cell?

Hadley cell refers to a model of the atmospheric circulation of the Earth, which was proposed by George Hadley in 1735. Hadley devised this model to explain the flowing trade winds that travel to the west and the equator.

The Hadley cell is composed of a wind system in the north and south hemisphere where the westward and equatorward flow near the surface of the Earth and the eastward and poleward flow at higher altitudes. This model shows that the places in the tropical regions receive higher amounts of solar radiation, which they release back into space, while those in the polar regions radiate more heat than they receive.

Since the tropical and the polar regions have nearly constant temperatures, the Hadley cell leads to the theory that warm air rises near the equator, travels to the pole at high altitudes, and then loses heat to the cold air near the poles. The cooler and denser air then drops and shifts to the equator at low levels until it reaches the equator, where it gets warm and rises again.