State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory105

  • What Caused the Great Famine?

    What Caused the Great Famine?

    Scientists are unraveling the driving forces of one of the worst environmental disasters in human history, in hopes of predicting and preparing for the next global drought.

  • How Can Changing Climate Affect a Civilization?

    How Can Changing Climate Affect a Civilization?

    Billy D’Andrea is trying to understand Easter Island’s climate history over the last few thousand years and how communities dealt with past climate change.

  • Tiny Losses of Ice at Antarctica’s Fringes May Hasten Declines in Interior

    Tiny Losses of Ice at Antarctica’s Fringes May Hasten Declines in Interior

    A new study shows that even minor deterioration of ice shelves can instantaneously hasten the decline of ice hundreds of miles landward.

  • The Greenland Ice Sheet Is Sponging Up Meltwater

    The Greenland Ice Sheet Is Sponging Up Meltwater

    As climate warms, the surface of the Greenland ice sheet is melting, and all that meltwater ends up in seasonal rivers that flow to the sea. At least that is what scientists have assumed until now. A new study has shown that some of the meltwater is actually being soaked into porous subsurface ice and…

  • Understanding Earth’s Geologic History to Predict the Future

    Understanding Earth’s Geologic History to Predict the Future

    Organic geochemist Pratigya Polissar is developing new tools to look at the history of plants and ecosystems on Earth over the past 20 million years.

  • Studying Bioluminescent Blooms in the Arabian Sea

    Studying Bioluminescent Blooms in the Arabian Sea

    A plankton-like species is attacking the base of the food chain in the Arabian sea, disrupting water quality and killing fish. Researchers at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory are learning how to fight back.

  • American Geophysical Union 2017: Key Events From the Earth Institute

    American Geophysical Union 2017: Key Events From the Earth Institute

    A chronological guide to key talks and other events presented by Columbia University’s Earth Institute at the American Geophysical Union 2017 meeting. 

  • Want to Save the World? Start by Eating Less Beef

    Want to Save the World? Start by Eating Less Beef

    If we ate half as many burgers and steaks each week, a new study calculates that it could have a profound effect on carbon emissions and the environment.

  • The Way We Were: Climate and Human Evolution

    The Way We Were: Climate and Human Evolution

    In a remote desert region around Kenya’s Lake Turkana, paleoecologist and geochemist Kevin Uno collects fossils and sediments, searching for evidence about past climate, vegetation, animals, and water. His goal: to understand how climate affected our ancestors millions of years ago.

Overhead view of Columbia campus with text Columbia Climate School Class Day 2026: Congratulations Graduates

Congratulations to our Columbia Climate School Class of 2026 and all of our 2026 Columbia University graduates! Learn more about our May 15 Climate School Class Day celebration. 💙 #Columbia2026 #ColumbiaClimate2026

  • What Caused the Great Famine?

    What Caused the Great Famine?

    Scientists are unraveling the driving forces of one of the worst environmental disasters in human history, in hopes of predicting and preparing for the next global drought.

  • How Can Changing Climate Affect a Civilization?

    How Can Changing Climate Affect a Civilization?

    Billy D’Andrea is trying to understand Easter Island’s climate history over the last few thousand years and how communities dealt with past climate change.

  • Tiny Losses of Ice at Antarctica’s Fringes May Hasten Declines in Interior

    Tiny Losses of Ice at Antarctica’s Fringes May Hasten Declines in Interior

    A new study shows that even minor deterioration of ice shelves can instantaneously hasten the decline of ice hundreds of miles landward.

  • The Greenland Ice Sheet Is Sponging Up Meltwater

    The Greenland Ice Sheet Is Sponging Up Meltwater

    As climate warms, the surface of the Greenland ice sheet is melting, and all that meltwater ends up in seasonal rivers that flow to the sea. At least that is what scientists have assumed until now. A new study has shown that some of the meltwater is actually being soaked into porous subsurface ice and…

  • Understanding Earth’s Geologic History to Predict the Future

    Understanding Earth’s Geologic History to Predict the Future

    Organic geochemist Pratigya Polissar is developing new tools to look at the history of plants and ecosystems on Earth over the past 20 million years.

  • Studying Bioluminescent Blooms in the Arabian Sea

    Studying Bioluminescent Blooms in the Arabian Sea

    A plankton-like species is attacking the base of the food chain in the Arabian sea, disrupting water quality and killing fish. Researchers at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory are learning how to fight back.

  • American Geophysical Union 2017: Key Events From the Earth Institute

    American Geophysical Union 2017: Key Events From the Earth Institute

    A chronological guide to key talks and other events presented by Columbia University’s Earth Institute at the American Geophysical Union 2017 meeting. 

  • Want to Save the World? Start by Eating Less Beef

    Want to Save the World? Start by Eating Less Beef

    If we ate half as many burgers and steaks each week, a new study calculates that it could have a profound effect on carbon emissions and the environment.

  • The Way We Were: Climate and Human Evolution

    The Way We Were: Climate and Human Evolution

    In a remote desert region around Kenya’s Lake Turkana, paleoecologist and geochemist Kevin Uno collects fossils and sediments, searching for evidence about past climate, vegetation, animals, and water. His goal: to understand how climate affected our ancestors millions of years ago.