Sen. Alexander has introduced SB 364 which creates the crime of “Weather Control” and makes it a Class A misdemeanor. Which, right away, raises some questions. If Dr. Evil launches a weather satellite to mess with the weather, shouldn’t it be a felony?

Specifically, in a chapter entitled “Weather Control,” the legislation specifies that “a person may not, with the intent of affecting the intensity of sunlight, temperature, or weather, discharge a chemical or apparatus into the atmosphere.” It exempts from application of the legislation operation of “a misting device or other temperature regulation device to warm or cool individuals on the same premises as the device.” Violation of the Weather Control chapter constitutes a Class A misdemeanor, elevated to a Level 1 felony if it results in death or serious bodily injury.

I don’t know if this a “ripped from a popular novel” situation, but this does track a major plot point from Neal Stephenson’s 2021 novel “Termination Shock” pretty closely. In that book, T.R. Schmidt is a billionaire who owns the T.R. Mick’s Mobility Center chain of gas stations (clearly modeled off of Buc-ee’s.) He uses his wealth to buy a bunch of land in Texas which he turns into a compound for launching sulfur into the atmosphere, intended as a way to reflect sunlight away from the earth and cool down global temperatures. This is not just make believe by Stephenson. The 1991 Mount Pinatubo eruption injected enough sulfur into the atmosphere to have an impact. Solar radiation modification, particularly through stratospheric aerosol injection is something being studied and at least theoretically possible.

But, in any event, if Sen. Alexander is successful and a wanna be T.R. tries such a stunt in Indiana, he or she would become a misdemeanant.