Sky's the limit: Israeli startup makes balloons to trap 1-tonne carbon a day at a cost below $100

An Israeli startup has joined the fight against global warming by seeking inspiration in the upper atmosphere, where it hopes to send fleets of balloons that will trap carbon dioxide for recycling.

Carbon dioxide emissions are the main cause of climate change. But removing CO2 from the atmosphere at standard temperatures requires too much energy. High Hopes Labs developed a system that captures the carbon where it has almost solidified, far above the Earth.

CEO Nadav Mansdorf said, "The beautiful thing is that capturing gas is very easy when it's close to freezing…," which is at 80°C, found around 50 Km above earth's surface.

The company has so far tested its system on a small scale, and aims to build larger balloons within two years that could each be deployed to remove a tonne of carbon a day at a cost below $100, Mansdorf said.

Report by Samarth

Graphics by Pushpendra