their superiors had initially preferred a different approach , huge equatorial solar curtains deployed in orbit to reflect heat , squadrons of orbital beam weapons to blast and disperse storms as they formed , secure underground dwellings for the inhabitants , complex lock and canal systems to control flooding ... katrin and davout had argued for a more elegant approach to rhea 's problems , a reliance on organic systems to modify the planet 's extreme weather instead of assaulting rhea with macro-tech and engineering .