U.S. exploring all options on climate

The president's new science adviser said yesterday that global warming is so dire, the Obama administration is discussing radical technologies to cool Earth's air. In his first interview since being confirmed last month, John Holdren said officials have talked about the idea of geoengineering the climate. One such extreme option includes shooting pollution particles into the upper atmosphere to reflect the sun's rays. Holdren said such an experimental measure would only be used as a last resort. "We don't have the luxury of taking any approach off the table," Holdren said. At talks in Bonn, Germany, meantime, the U.N.'s climate chief said industrial countries are falling short on pledging to slash their carbon emissions over the next decade while the chief U.S. delegate urged negotiators to adopt a more long-term strategy. The contrasting visions of the fight against global warming emerged in the first appearance of the U.S. delegation sent by President Obama, which nonetheless was warmly welcomed at a two-week negotiating session attended by 175 nations. Ending his first round of talks as chief U.S. delegate, Jonathan Pershing said he found a "wide divergence" of positions, and "implausible" demands of some developing countries on wealthier nations...AP