#HTE

For today’s Earth Week post we’re excited to feature the efforts of Project Vesta. This Overview shows the test beach in the Caribbean where they are advancing the science of Coastal Carbon Capture — an elegant natural solution to sequestering CO2 by spreading an abundant mineral called olivine (seen in the second photo). The exact location of the beach will be disclosed in the coming months.

Olivine sand that is placed in coastal waters accelerates the Earth’s natural, long-term carbon-capture process. Here’s how it works: when olivine sand is impacted by ocean waves it breaks down, which sets off a natural process called “weathering” where carbon is pulled from the ocean’s waters and the atmosphere. As a result, ocean acidity is reduced, and over geologic timescales, limestone is also formed — effectively locking the carbon back in permanently. This first Project Vesta test beach will continue to be the site of groundbreaking research, bringing 30 years of lab trials into the real world for the first time with large-scale experimentation.

Source imagery: Maxar / Project Vesta