State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

201141

  • Climate News Roundup: Week of 4/24

    Climate News Roundup: Week of 4/24

    Carbon emissions ‘hidden’ in imported goods revealed, BBC, Apr. 25 Two recent studies present that the amount of carbon dioxide emissions “hidden” in imported goods is increasing. These emissions are not currently included in national estimates. “There is a degree of delusion about emissions cuts in developed nations. They are not really cuts at all…

  • British Royals’ Green Wedding

    British Royals’ Green Wedding

    The Royal wedding used up a lot of resources, but Will and Kate did their best to keep it green.

  • Switchyard Project: Day 1 – Alert, Alert, Alert

    Switchyard Project: Day 1 – Alert, Alert, Alert

    The first day of our operation is usually filled with a lot of work preparing and testing the instruments we brought up here, preparing the airplanes, loading our equipment into the planes, setting up the equipment in the laboratory and preparing the sampling containers. Since our operation requires drilling holes through the sea ice, we…

  • Professor Jeffrey Sachs Extends Term as Director of the Earth Institute

    Professor Jeffrey Sachs Extends Term as Director of the Earth Institute

    The Earth Institute, Columbia University announced that Professor Jeffrey Sachs has agreed to extend his term as its director. Since his tenure began in 2002, Sachs has led the Earth Institute to become a leading scientific authority on sustainable development while simultaneously expanding its reach worldwide. Through his guidance, the Earth Institute and its scientists…

  • Keeping America Competitive by Sparking Curiosity in the Classroom

    Keeping America Competitive by Sparking Curiosity in the Classroom

    To keep America competitive in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (the STEM disciplines), a report from the National Academy of Sciences calls for strengthening the skills of some 250,000 teachers across the United States through university-run science training programs. The report asserts that when teachers gain laboratory experience and conduct fieldwork alongside active researchers, they…

  • ‘One Yard Line’ For Cape Wind?

    ‘One Yard Line’ For Cape Wind?

    Jim Gordon, the developer of Cape Wind, recently spoke at Columbia University about his experience working to get the first offshore wind farm in the US built.

  • Portland Opposes a Federal Rule due to a “Unique Water Source”

    Portland Opposes a Federal Rule due to a “Unique Water Source”

    In Portland, Oregon Federal Water Treatment Rule LT2 faces opposition due to high water costs and what its City Commissioner describes as its “unique water source”.

  • Can Big Earthquakes Disrupt World Weather?

    Can Big Earthquakes Disrupt World Weather?

    The recent earthquake in Japan shifted the earth’s axis by half a foot. You may be wondering if that’s enough to change earth’s weather. No, not really, says Jerry McManus, a climate scientist at Columbia’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory. Earthquakes unleash a tremendous amount of energy, but not enough to upset the energy balance of earth’s…

  • Switchyard Project: In Transit…Part 2

    Switchyard Project: In Transit…Part 2

    April 27, 2011: We spent the night in Thule in the North Star Hotel. Before we could leave Thule the crew had to load the cargo back into the C130. Equipment is loaded onto palettes, and these palettes are loaded through the rear door into the plane. A C130 can handle four palettes with two tons of cargo…

Photo of the Earth from space with the text "Lamont at AGU25" on top.

AGU25, the premier Earth and space science conference, takes place December 15-19, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana. This year’s theme—Where Science Connects Us—puts in focus how science depends on connection, from the lab to the field to the ballot box. Once again, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory and Columbia Climate School scientists, experts, students, and educators are playing an active role, sharing our research and helping shape the future of our planet. #AGU25 Learn More

  • Climate News Roundup: Week of 4/24

    Climate News Roundup: Week of 4/24

    Carbon emissions ‘hidden’ in imported goods revealed, BBC, Apr. 25 Two recent studies present that the amount of carbon dioxide emissions “hidden” in imported goods is increasing. These emissions are not currently included in national estimates. “There is a degree of delusion about emissions cuts in developed nations. They are not really cuts at all…

  • British Royals’ Green Wedding

    British Royals’ Green Wedding

    The Royal wedding used up a lot of resources, but Will and Kate did their best to keep it green.

  • Switchyard Project: Day 1 – Alert, Alert, Alert

    Switchyard Project: Day 1 – Alert, Alert, Alert

    The first day of our operation is usually filled with a lot of work preparing and testing the instruments we brought up here, preparing the airplanes, loading our equipment into the planes, setting up the equipment in the laboratory and preparing the sampling containers. Since our operation requires drilling holes through the sea ice, we…

  • Professor Jeffrey Sachs Extends Term as Director of the Earth Institute

    Professor Jeffrey Sachs Extends Term as Director of the Earth Institute

    The Earth Institute, Columbia University announced that Professor Jeffrey Sachs has agreed to extend his term as its director. Since his tenure began in 2002, Sachs has led the Earth Institute to become a leading scientific authority on sustainable development while simultaneously expanding its reach worldwide. Through his guidance, the Earth Institute and its scientists…

  • Keeping America Competitive by Sparking Curiosity in the Classroom

    Keeping America Competitive by Sparking Curiosity in the Classroom

    To keep America competitive in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (the STEM disciplines), a report from the National Academy of Sciences calls for strengthening the skills of some 250,000 teachers across the United States through university-run science training programs. The report asserts that when teachers gain laboratory experience and conduct fieldwork alongside active researchers, they…

  • ‘One Yard Line’ For Cape Wind?

    ‘One Yard Line’ For Cape Wind?

    Jim Gordon, the developer of Cape Wind, recently spoke at Columbia University about his experience working to get the first offshore wind farm in the US built.

  • Portland Opposes a Federal Rule due to a “Unique Water Source”

    Portland Opposes a Federal Rule due to a “Unique Water Source”

    In Portland, Oregon Federal Water Treatment Rule LT2 faces opposition due to high water costs and what its City Commissioner describes as its “unique water source”.

  • Can Big Earthquakes Disrupt World Weather?

    Can Big Earthquakes Disrupt World Weather?

    The recent earthquake in Japan shifted the earth’s axis by half a foot. You may be wondering if that’s enough to change earth’s weather. No, not really, says Jerry McManus, a climate scientist at Columbia’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory. Earthquakes unleash a tremendous amount of energy, but not enough to upset the energy balance of earth’s…

  • Switchyard Project: In Transit…Part 2

    Switchyard Project: In Transit…Part 2

    April 27, 2011: We spent the night in Thule in the North Star Hotel. Before we could leave Thule the crew had to load the cargo back into the C130. Equipment is loaded onto palettes, and these palettes are loaded through the rear door into the plane. A C130 can handle four palettes with two tons of cargo…