Solar radiation management or SRM (sometimes referred to as solar radiation modification) are proposed techniques to cool the Earth by reflecting away sunlight (solar radiation).
At this stage we still don’t know enough about how well these techniques might work to tackle global climate change, or what their impact might be. For instance, if they work would they cool the earth evenly? Could large scale introduction disrupt global weather patterns? What might be the possible benefits of their introduction?
During July 2024, the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), part of UK Research and Innovation, launched a call for research proposals to carry out climate modelling to understand the impacts of SRM techniques if ever implemented at scale. The research will consider the detrimental impacts of earth heating under climate scenarios versus the response where SRM is deployed. The four modelling projects identified started in April 2025.
Alongside this, NERC, with Sciencewise, has commissioned a public dialogue on SRM to gain insights into public perceptions of such approaches, especially within the context of 2024 cited by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) as the warmest year on record and 2025 UK concerns about a summer drought.
To be clear, the Government is not deploying SRM and has no plans to do so given the Government’s position on SRM.
However, the results of the dialogue, due early in 2026, will be brought together with the research from the research programme to provide a broader evidence base for decision makers.
An Oversight Group was established early in the project to help shape the public dialogue contract, oversee the process and materials for the project, and ensure there is a wider range of perspectives, beyond the NERC funded research community, informing the dialogue.
The dialogue will include 56 participants drawn from all four UK nations. It will be designed and managed by contractors Hopkins Van Mil, with participants, stakeholders and staff safeguarding woven into the approach. URSUS Consulting Ltd. has been appointed as project evaluators.
