State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

East Pacific Rise2

  • Journey to the EPR

    Yesterday we set sail from Manzanillo, Mexico, bound for a hydrothermal vent system on the East Pacific Rise (EPR) near 10 degrees North.  The EPR is part of the world’s mid-ocean ridge system where new crust is formed as Earth’s plates spread apart. Many of the most exciting Earth processes occur at mid-ocean ridges, including…

  • Quakes Under Pacific Floor Reveal Unexpected Circulatory System

    Study Upsets Long-Held Image of Volcanism-Driven Hydrothermal Vents

Columbia Climate School Giving Day on October 28, 2026, featuring students and renewable energy imagery

October 28, 2026 is Columbia Giving Day! Your gift to Columbia Climate School helps advance interdisciplinary research, educate the next generation of leaders, and transform bold ideas into real-world solutions for climate, Earth, and society.

  • Journey to the EPR

    Yesterday we set sail from Manzanillo, Mexico, bound for a hydrothermal vent system on the East Pacific Rise (EPR) near 10 degrees North.  The EPR is part of the world’s mid-ocean ridge system where new crust is formed as Earth’s plates spread apart. Many of the most exciting Earth processes occur at mid-ocean ridges, including…

  • Quakes Under Pacific Floor Reveal Unexpected Circulatory System

    Study Upsets Long-Held Image of Volcanism-Driven Hydrothermal Vents