Is this just haze or something more?
We clocked this article back in July from the BBC about real-world UK experiments to reflect sunlight and potentially cool the planet. At the time, I dismissed it. But this summer has felt different to the previous seven where we've lived, with a persistent haze most days, even when it’s “sunny”. Our skies feel… muted.
Is anyone else noticing this?
Pre-order: The Ultimate Guide to Heat Pumps
Subscribe and follow our Homeowners’ Q&A heat pump podcast
I am not a scientist nor a meteorologist and I know the cube root of s*d all about climatology, however, ignorance does not ban me from having my own thoughts and fears of such interventions as cloud impregnation to produce higher reflectivity.
Perhaps I am cynical but who or what organisations are the proposed funders of such schemes - might they have some connection with the fossil fuel industry? I feel that such schemes are proposed, not to reduce the climate imbalance but to quell those who wish to reduce fossil fuel use; ‘if we do this, then we can burn more fossils without deleterious effect on the climate, so all is ok innit?’ type of thing.
We (all the ‘developed’ nations) have been pouring pollutants into the air for some 200 years with little thought as to the outcome of such actions. The effects have been cumulative and some ‘tin pot’ hair brained, unproven ideas of painting clouds with reflective properties (using aircraft that themselves are spewing out even more pollutants as they go on their merry way) just won’t cut it! (The expression about a drop in the ocean comes to mind.) 2 centuries of spewing pollutants into the air would take a great deal of of remedial measures I feel. Is it a proven technology they would like to use? I doubt it - and if the technology isn’t sound…
On your actual question Mars, with my eyesight, I am not sure if I would detect such a haze anyway; however, I feel that even if my visions of the situation are a little jaundiced (sceptical?) I foresee such money being wasted with as yet unknown consequences and might well have been invested in renewable energy projects instead.
Am I a looney, a fear monger, an ill educated twerp who should not be let loose, never mind allowed access to such organs as RHH? Maybe, but I feel I am entitled to my opinion and feel that in my 77 years so far, I have witnessed numerous ‘experiments’ that have back fired on humanity and the world. I think Sir David Attenborough would have something to say on the matter (and so much more eloquently than I) - I’ll step down from my soap box now - who’s next?
Regrets, Toodles
Toodles, he heats his home with cold draughts and cooks his food with magnets.
Posted by: @toodles...but I feel I am entitled to my opinion...
Of course you're entitled, @toodles, and I would be very concerned if such entitlement were taken from any of us.
However, alongside a right to an opinion comes a responsibility to regularly check that opinion to see if it continues to makes sense otherwise we just risk intransigence. You, I have found, are very open to reasoned discussion, so I'm naturally more inclined to listen to your opinion. Here endeth my hobby-horse moment.
Posted by: @editorBut this summer has felt different to the previous seven where we've lived, with a persistent haze most days, even when it’s “sunny”. Our skies feel… muted.
@editor, whilst I'd love it if someone had found some magic bullet scheme I rather doubt any attempts will have got that far that quickly and especially not without a fair amount of fanfare.
As a pure guess, I'd lean towards the seemingly more likely possibility that all this warm weather and the greater amount of evaporation it will have brought with it probably means the air is hazy because of the greater water content. I certainly find my favourite time of the year to be late autumn/early winter when the crisp, frosty mornings have stripped the air of moisture and I can see for miles.
105 m2 bungalow in South East England
Mitsubishi Ecodan 8.5 kW air source heat pump
18 x 360W solar panels
1 x 6 kW GroWatt battery and SPH5000 inverter
1 x Myenergi Zappi
1 x VW ID3
Raised beds for home-grown veg and chickens for eggs
"Semper in excretia; sumus solum profundum variat"
@majordennisbloodnok I was giving a talk to primary school - aged pupils some years ago as this was something I did for some local schools from time to time as I worked in education and had contact with many primary school teachers. I used to give a short talk about living with sight loss. One pupil enquired ‘How far can you see Sir?’ I replied (rather cheekily) ‘Ninety Two Million Miles’ and went on to explain I could see the Sun. Mind you, I am uncertain as to whether I could see the haze even then! Sorry for the digression folks!. Toodles.
Toodles, he heats his home with cold draughts and cooks his food with magnets.
I think the present somewhat cooler hazy days show the promise of geo-engineering but £60m would not be anywhere near near enough so we can be certain that we have only natural haze at present.
But the world to be exact south-east Asia have just been doing a very large scale experiment. Their large output of sulphur and other aerosol particulates have been slowing global warming over the past few decades. Killing lots of people with pollution instead though.
So they’ve now put scrubbers on dirty coal-fired power stations and the output is cleaner. Ships are now starting to burn cleaner fuels (not sump oil-like stuff) as they steam around the world.
The scientific papers are in Nature (prestigious journal) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-42891-2 (both heavy going) & https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-025-02527-3
this web site is an easier read https://www.carbonbrief.org/explainer-how-human-caused-aerosols-are-masking-global-warming/
So in principle our skies should look clearer!
2kW + Growatt & 4kW +Sunnyboy PV on south-facing roof Solar thermal. 9.5kWh Givenergy battery with AC3. MVHR. Vaillant 7kW ASHP (very pleased with it) open system operating on WC
- 26 Forums
- 2,183 Topics
- 48.1 K Posts
- 39 Online
- 5,756 Members
Join Us!
Podcast Picks
Latest Posts
-
RE: Help me keep the faith with my air source heat pump installation
My house built in 1982 had a fuse wire fuse board that ...
By AgentGeorge , 55 seconds ago
-
RE: Do I just go with the lowest quote for my heat pump?
Maybe, it depends on how Daikin use the information. ...
By JamesPa , 8 hours ago
-
RE: Do primaries need anti vibration clips?
@adamk @ashp-bobba The vast majority of the time my 7...
By JamesPa , 8 hours ago
-
@toodles Thank you kindly for the suggestion, I will...
By Papahuhu , 8 hours ago
-
RE: Which temperature sensor for a Steibel buffer and Ecodan?
@davidalgarve As advised above, its worth speaking to M...
By ASHP-BOBBA , 9 hours ago
-
RE: Heat Pump Servicing & Maintenance – Good Value or Rip-Off?
@seatonian all comments on YT are moderated. I’ll appro...
By Mars , 10 hours ago
-
RE: Heat Pump Installers: Competence, Illusion and the Hard Truth Homeowners Must Face
These systems are not as complicated as it all appears,...
By ASHP-BOBBA , 10 hours ago
-
Interesting, but IOF is so much better for us in summer...
By Old_Scientist , 10 hours ago
-
I get the general idea with the spread sheets, I did so...
By cathodeRay , 12 hours ago
-
RE: New Vaillant aroTherm Plus in black - When will it come to the UK?
I asked Vaillant, who responded: The new range of V...
By avenir , 15 hours ago
-
@peanutbutter4 - welcome to the forum. Running costs: I...
By cathodeRay , 17 hours ago
-
RE: Testing new controls/monitoring for Midea Clone ASHP
@papahuhu I found that as well with homely. It generall...
By benson , 21 hours ago
-
Is there any update on this system? How's it running no...
By davidnolan22 , 1 day ago
-
RE: Why does an ASHP provide a more comfortable environment than a gas boiler?
Even if it is oversized it's very highly probably that ...
By JamesPa , 1 day ago
-
RE: Updated Data on Dimplex Edal 270L ASHP Hot water tank 1 year full data. Scottish Highlands
Air to Air conditioning units still need an external Fa...
By Bob@Lochinver , 2 days ago
-
@judith Applied for replacement from installer. If...
By cliffhanger , 2 days ago
-
RE: Renewable Heating Hub WhatsApp Channel
I clicked on the link and have WhatsApp on the computer...
By dgclimatecontrol , 3 days ago