Republican Rep. Louie Gohmert has suggested that changing the moon's orbit around the Earth, or the Earth's orbit around the sun might help fight climate change.
The remarks were made on Tuesday, June 8, during a hearing with the House Natural Resources Committee.
As he spoke with Jennifer Eberlien, a senior Forest Service official, the Texas congressman, 67, threw some ideas around in a bid to reach a solution to the increasingly detrimental impact of climate change on our planet.
Check out what the politician had to say below:Gohmert said: "I understand from what’s been testified to the Forest Service and the BLM [Bureau of Land Management], you want very much to work on the issue of climate change."
He then proceeded to claim that a previous director of NASA had once told him that orbits of the moon and the Earth were changing.
He went on: "I was informed by the immediate past director of NASA that they've found that the moon's orbit is changing slightly and so is the Earth's orbit around the sun.
"We know there’s been significant solar flare activity, and so … is there anything that the National Forest Service or BLM can do to change the course of the moon’s orbit, or the Earth’s orbit around the sun? Obviously, that would have profound effects on our climate."
In response to Gohmert's suggestion, Eberlein politely told the congressman: "I would have to follow up with you on that one, Mr. Gohmert."
To which Gohmert responded: "Well, if you figure out a way that you in the Forest Service can make that change, I’d like to know."
As confirmed by NASA, the Earth's orbit around the sun is not responsible for climate change. In a blog post, the space agency delved into how the cycles of earth's orbit, known as Milankovitch cycles, operate.
NASA wrote: "The small changes set in motion by Milankovitch cycles operate separately and together to influence Earth’s climate over very long timespans, leading to larger changes in our climate over tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of years."
