Combatting Climate Change: How Cooling Glass Can Reflect Solar Radiation

New “cooling glass” has shown to reflect 99 percent of solar radiation into space.
(Image credit: NASA)

Despite the increasing warmth of the planet, scientists have exciting news. A new, highly reflective glass coating has been developed which may help to cool the Earth. The coating, made of a slurry-like mixture of inexpensive glass and aluminum oxide particles, reflects sunlight, and could be painted onto surfaces to help reduce heat.

Laboratory tests have indicated that the coating can reflect up to 99% of solar radiation, and if it lives up to this promise, it could offer a new solution to reducing temperatures across Earth.

“This is more than just a new material — it’s a key part of the solution to climate change,” said Xinpeng Zhao, who led the new study. “This could change the way we live and help us take better care of our home and planet,” said Zhao in a statement.

Related: These scientists want to put a massive ‘sunshade’ in orbit to help fight climate change

The newly developed coating reflects sunlight in the atmospheric transparency window, which helps accelerate the Earth’s natural cooling process. This could ultimately help reduce our use of air conditioning, allowing us to work toward a cooler, more sustainable future.

A new paint, developed by the team, comes in four colors and is incredibly durable for at least 30 years, withstanding extreme temperatures and even exposure to water and flames. Aaswath Raman, a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, not involved in the study, said, “In that sense, I think this is certainly an interesting, potentially effective strategy.”

Ultimately, we will have to wait and see how this new coating will compete with existing approaches. The new research is published in the journal Science.

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