Asian Summer Monsoon Exacerbates the transport efficiency of Stratospheric Aerosol Injection

Efficiently delivering large quantities of climate intervention material (CIM) to the stratosphere remains a technical challenge in stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI). A novel approach, solar-powered lofting (SPL), mimics the natural ascent of wildfire smoke, using small amounts of black carbon (BC) to transport SO₂ from the troposphere to the stratosphere. The Asian Summer Monsoon(ASM) anticyclone over the Tibetan Plateau can also transport aerosols into the stratosphere, acting as a “chimney”. In this study, we investigate whether these two effcts, i.e.  SPL effect and ASM “chimney effect”, combined together to deploy SAI will have better effect, by using a fully coupled Earth System Model.We select the Tibetan Plateau as the injection site for the Northern Hemisphere mid-latitudes, instead of the traditional Pacific location, and compare the differences in sulfate aerosol transport efficiency, distribution, and climate impacts. From 2040 to 2047 under the SSP5-85 emission scenario, ASM’s injection results in 20% more sulfur transported to the stratosphere and a 20% reduction in radiative forcing imbalance at mid-latitudes. Additionally, they lead to a 25% increase in both global annual average surface cooling and September Arcitc sea ice recovery.