Eco Factor: Reflected light from greenhouses lowering the temperature in Southern Spain.
Greenhouses are made to keep things nice and warm for the lovely little seedlings and plants that grows underneath. However, things in southern Spain have just changed, according to the findings of a new survey. The southeastern region of Almeria, which is home to the world’s largest expanse of greenhouses, is reflecting so much sunlight back to space, that the average temperature of the region is coming down.
The region is practically dotted with greenhouses in an effort to improve its agricultural qualities. Recently, scientists and researchers from the University of Almeria have made use of satellite data to understand the differences in the heat being radiated from the ground, in between the natural and the greenhouse-covered land. The results have shown that the air temperature of the region is being cooled down by an average of 0.3 degrees Celsius per decade, since the last two and a half decades. On the other hand, over the rest of Spain the temperatures have risen by 0.5 degrees Celsius, due to global warming. Researchers now believe that similar setups in the rest of the world can lower the temperature of the planet down and save us from the adverse effects of global warming.
The Dark Side:
Researchers have shown that vast expanses of greenhouses can lower the temperature of a region, but in the concrete jungle we are currently living in, it would be hard to find places where such massive setups can be installed to lower the temperature of a region. For now, the solution does not seem feasible on a global level.
Via: Popsci
