Earth Sciences100
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The Zen of Sanding
By Ana Camila Gonzalez “But can’t you see the rings already?” I ask, wondering why I’ve been asked to sand a sample- it sounds to me like one would damage a sample by subjecting it to the mechanical screech of a sander. “Yes, but under the microscope they look foggy if you don’t sand…
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The ‘Skinny’ on Antarctic Sea Ice
One piece of our IceBridge mission focuses on sea ice here in the south. Sea ice in the northern regions has been reducing at dramatic rates over the last decade, setting a new record just this year, but the story in the south is not so clear. In fact, there has been a buzz that…
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The Science and the Lessons of Hurricane Sandy
Reports and studies have been imagining events like Sandy for years now; so why were so few people ready to listen? And will this lead to a serious conversation about climate change in the halls of power?
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Bharungamari – End of the Road
For our final installation, we had to go from the edge of the Bay of Bengal almost to Bangladesh’s northern border with India, a trip of over 350 miles. Along the way we stopped at Humayun’s childhood home, had several flats and picked up a student of Humayun’s from the town where we installed it.…
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Hiron Point in Sundarban
We traveled by boat to the south part of the Sundarbans near the Indian Ocean to install a GPS at Hiron Point, this isolated facility also hosts a tide gauge recording long-term water level changes due to rising sea level and land subsidence. Our GPS will help distinguish how much of each there is in…
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Polder 32
Polder 32 is one of the many inland islands in Bangladesh that was enclosed by an embankment to protect it from flooding. When that embankment failed during Cyclone Aila in 2009, the island was flooded for almost 2 years. Subsidence of the ground inside the embankment with no sedimentation to compensate made it worse. We…
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Khepupara to Kokilmoni
Leaving Dhaka, we spend an entire day getting to Khepupara in southern Bangladesh. Then we spent a long morning installing a GPS to monitor subsidence of the delta before heading back on the road again.
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Influencing Students Towards a More Sustainable Path
In a recent interview, Dr. Stuart Gaffin provided his thoughts on the direction that the field of sustainability is moving into. In his words, urban environmental research is the topic of the day: “Many cities, including New York, are putting ambitious plans in place to reduce emissions, and implement adaptation practices, including novel green infrastructure…
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Applying Classroom Theory in the Forest
Under-graduate and graduate students from Columbia University joined professors Kevin Griffin and Matthew Palmer in September for the first of 10 field trips outside of the New York City area. Dr. Griffin and Dr. Palmer teach Forest Ecology, a course that combines classroom theory with hands-on experience and training in methods of ecological field work.
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
