UK puts Google AI on the flight path to fewer contrails
PUBLIC SECTOR
Trial will test whether small route and altitude tweaks can reduce aviation's warming impact
Britain is putting Google AI in the flight-planning loop to see whether airliners can dodge the patches of sky where their vapor trails are most likely to stick around and warm the planet.
The UK government is backing a trial to predict where persistent contrails will form over the North Atlantic and help participating aircraft avoid those areas by adjusting their routes or altitude.
The Department for Transport is putting £2.6 million into the 30-month project, which will combine Met Office weather forecasts with Google's artificial intelligence to suggest alternative flight paths.
Flight tests are scheduled for the winters of 2026-27 and 2027-28. Any route or altitude changes will go through normal air traffic control procedures and require the usual safety checks.
Those white streaks behind aircraft aren't just an opportunity for conspiracy theorists...
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