Pumpjacks are obscured by heat as they operate and a flare burns in Midland.

This chart, produced by the nonprofit research organization Climate Central and based on data from NOAA, shows that Houston's average daily low temperatures between June and August have warmed by 5.5 degrees since 1970.

CPS Energy Calaveras Power Station in San Antonio.

A drilling rig in the Eagle Ford Shale.

Imagine a world where we can burn all the coal, oil and natural gas we desire without worrying about climate change, but with one significant trade-off: No living thing will see a blue sky again.

Entrepreneurs and scientists are launching a burgeoning industry called solar radiation management that would do just that. They say our refusal to reduce carbon emissions will force us to spray reflective particles into the stratosphere to reflect sunlight and avoid overheating the planet.

So-called geoengineering will appeal to victims of climate change-induced extreme weather, such as last week’s flooding in Houston, who will demand quicker fixes than the fossil fuel industry wants to deliver.

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Meanwhile, petrochemical companies see a reasonable way to maintain their profitability by spraying sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere, a product they already make in large quantities.

The most frightening fact about geoengineering........

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