• Bookstore

The study will look at a range of ambitious proposals that have been receiving increasing attention and consider whether they could be feasible or effective. It will also look at the environmental and social impacts and any other possible unintended consequences of these schemes.

Proposals to intervene in the Earth's natural climate system to help tackle man-made climate change include placing giant mirrors in space to reflect sunlight away from the Earth.

It has also been suggested that releasing tiny particles into the upper atmosphere could help cool the climate by reducing the amount of the sun's energy that reaches the Earth's surface.

Other scientists have proposed fertilising the oceans with nutrients, such as iron, to promote blooms of phytoplankton which would soak up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

The chair of Royal Society working group that will undertake the study, Professor John Shepherd, said: "Some of these proposals seem fantastical, and may prove to be so. Our study aims to separate the science from the science fiction and offer recommendations on which options deserve serious consideration.

"We need to investigate if any of these schemes could help us avoid the most dangerous changes to our climate and to fully understand what other impacts they may have.

"Whatever solutions technology may offer us in the future, it's clear that the need to cut emissions of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere is now more urgent than ever."

The Royal Society report is expected to be published in the middle of next year.  Individuals and organisations that are interested in submitting information to this study should visit the Royal Society website.