Computer simulations suggest that it could be possible to artificially influence the weather by inserting “butterfly effect” perturbations. The butterfly effect, first theorised by mathematician and meteorologist Edward Lorenz in the 1960s, is a phenomenon whereby an infinitesimal perturbation, like “a butterfly flapping its wings”, can have huge consequences, like “a tornado in Texas”. It forms part of chaos theory, which posits that seemingly random activity and events can be deterministically attributed to specific causes. Can this cause a permanent irreversible damage ?
