State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

20148

  • MPA Program Announces Full Fellowship Opportunity—Apply Now

    MPA Program Announces Full Fellowship Opportunity—Apply Now

    The Master of Public Administration in Environmental Science and Policy program now offers its first full-tuition grant, the Dean’s Environmental Science and Policy Fellowship. Apply by Nov. 1 for early admission.

  • Sun-gazing

    Sun-gazing

    By Galileo’s careful hand, sunspot details are exquisite, Through eye of forehead, eye of mind beholds what body can not visit. If only he could see the sights now rendered from Earth’s outer space, Ultraviolet sunscapes – Oh, to see his raptured face!

  • MPA Alum Named to City and State’s 40 Under 40

    MPA Alum Named to City and State’s 40 Under 40

    Alison Miller, a 2011 alumna of the MPA in Environmental Science and Policy program, was recently named one of 2014 City & State’s top 40 under 40 Rising Stars. The media company, devoted to covering New York politics and policies, nominates 40 exceptional individuals each year who are leaving their mark on New York City.

  • Eye on the Storm

    Eye on the Storm

    Atmospheric scientist Adam Sobel is author of the new book “Storm Surge: Hurricane Sandy, Our Changing Climate and Extreme Weather of the Past and Future.” Sobel was one of the first researchers to explain to media and the public what might be brewing, before the storm hit. In the aftermath, he looked closely at the…

  • Warming Streams Have Cascading Impacts in the Amazon

    Warming Streams Have Cascading Impacts in the Amazon

    To protect a river, you must preserve its headwaters. Agricultural development is warming streams at the headwaters of the Xingu River, in Mato Grosso, Brazil. Rising temperatures have local impacts that could cascade into regional changes, highlighting the importance of responsible land use outside of protected areas.

  • What Do Wildfires Have to Do with Climate Change?

    What Do Wildfires Have to Do with Climate Change?

    “Climate change has been making the fire season in the United States longer and on average more intense,” said John Holdren, President Obama’s science advisor. And, wildfires are not only intensified by climate change, they also exacerbate it.

  • Orogenous Zones: How Rock Flows

    Orogenous Zones: How Rock Flows

    The architects of Columbia’s modern Northwest Tower, at the corner of Broadway and 120th Street, made good use of some beautiful stones. In their polished and swirling surfaces, they tell a story of the clash of continents and the processes by which mountains are made.

  • Chemical silence

    Chemical silence

    What if you couldn’t smell smoke? Or detect flirty signs from a bloke? Imagine the cost Of faculties lost, Of signals that deafness would cloak …

  • Reclaiming Butte through New Uses for Reclaimed Areas

    Reclaiming Butte through New Uses for Reclaimed Areas

    This weekend, students from Montana State University in Bozeman and Columbia University in New York gathered to generate ideas to use Butte’s reclaimed Superfund areas as more than vast swaths of grassland, but as places to foster community participation.

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

  • MPA Program Announces Full Fellowship Opportunity—Apply Now

    MPA Program Announces Full Fellowship Opportunity—Apply Now

    The Master of Public Administration in Environmental Science and Policy program now offers its first full-tuition grant, the Dean’s Environmental Science and Policy Fellowship. Apply by Nov. 1 for early admission.

  • Sun-gazing

    Sun-gazing

    By Galileo’s careful hand, sunspot details are exquisite, Through eye of forehead, eye of mind beholds what body can not visit. If only he could see the sights now rendered from Earth’s outer space, Ultraviolet sunscapes – Oh, to see his raptured face!

  • MPA Alum Named to City and State’s 40 Under 40

    MPA Alum Named to City and State’s 40 Under 40

    Alison Miller, a 2011 alumna of the MPA in Environmental Science and Policy program, was recently named one of 2014 City & State’s top 40 under 40 Rising Stars. The media company, devoted to covering New York politics and policies, nominates 40 exceptional individuals each year who are leaving their mark on New York City.

  • Eye on the Storm

    Eye on the Storm

    Atmospheric scientist Adam Sobel is author of the new book “Storm Surge: Hurricane Sandy, Our Changing Climate and Extreme Weather of the Past and Future.” Sobel was one of the first researchers to explain to media and the public what might be brewing, before the storm hit. In the aftermath, he looked closely at the…

  • Warming Streams Have Cascading Impacts in the Amazon

    Warming Streams Have Cascading Impacts in the Amazon

    To protect a river, you must preserve its headwaters. Agricultural development is warming streams at the headwaters of the Xingu River, in Mato Grosso, Brazil. Rising temperatures have local impacts that could cascade into regional changes, highlighting the importance of responsible land use outside of protected areas.

  • What Do Wildfires Have to Do with Climate Change?

    What Do Wildfires Have to Do with Climate Change?

    “Climate change has been making the fire season in the United States longer and on average more intense,” said John Holdren, President Obama’s science advisor. And, wildfires are not only intensified by climate change, they also exacerbate it.

  • Orogenous Zones: How Rock Flows

    Orogenous Zones: How Rock Flows

    The architects of Columbia’s modern Northwest Tower, at the corner of Broadway and 120th Street, made good use of some beautiful stones. In their polished and swirling surfaces, they tell a story of the clash of continents and the processes by which mountains are made.

  • Chemical silence

    Chemical silence

    What if you couldn’t smell smoke? Or detect flirty signs from a bloke? Imagine the cost Of faculties lost, Of signals that deafness would cloak …

  • Reclaiming Butte through New Uses for Reclaimed Areas

    Reclaiming Butte through New Uses for Reclaimed Areas

    This weekend, students from Montana State University in Bozeman and Columbia University in New York gathered to generate ideas to use Butte’s reclaimed Superfund areas as more than vast swaths of grassland, but as places to foster community participation.