State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory154

  • West Meets East – Antarctic Forum

    West Meets East – Antarctic Forum

    Remove outside distractions. Place participants in close proximity. Provide opportunities for intellectual stimulation and open dialogue. Promote group activities that are unique and extreme in nature to build common references between the participants. These are the ingredients for structuring an environment for creative group dynamics and problem solving. This is the structure of the Antarctic…

  • Can an Expedition to Antarctica Promote Widespread Change?

    Can an Expedition to Antarctica Promote Widespread Change?

    If you want to excite and inspire people about committing to environmental conservation and harmonious social development, why not load them onto a ship and take them to the ends of the Earth?

  • The Dinosaurs’ Demise Up Close

    The Dinosaurs’ Demise Up Close

    Tourists flock to Italy to see Michelangelo’s David and other iconic hunks of Renaissance stone, but in a trip over spring break, a group of Columbia students got to visit rocks that have shaped the world in even more profound ways.

  • When the Sahara Turned to Sand

    When the Sahara Turned to Sand

    The Sahara wasn’t always a desert. Trees and grasslands dominated the landscape from roughly 10,000 to 5,000 years ago. Then, abruptly, the climate changed. A study by Lamont-Doherty’s Peter deMenocal says it took just a few hundred years to happen.

  • On Nov. 12, Meet Climate Models in New York City

    On Nov. 12, Meet Climate Models in New York City

    Who’s studying Earth’s climate? Why? Where? How? And what are they learning? Panelists will explore these questions and discuss creative methods that can be used to better communicate climate science to the public.

  • The Hottest Thing Since the Hadean Eon

    The Hottest Thing Since the Hadean Eon

    Presenting the 2014 Climate Models wall calendar: the only calendar on Earth that shares the planet’s hottest climate science and the people behind it.

  • The Arctic’s Secret Garden

    The Arctic’s Secret Garden

    Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory marine biologists Craig Aumack and Andy Juhl spend a month each spring in Barrow studying the algae dwelling in and under the sea ice. Their goal is to learn more about the different species of algae that compose these communities and their role in the Arctic marine food web.

  • Exploring New Zealand Climate Change in Groundwater

    Exploring New Zealand Climate Change in Groundwater

    Alan Seltzer, a senior at Columbia University, traveled to New Zealand this past summer to work on field experiments aimed at reconstructing temperatures in the region over the last 20,000 years. His adviser, geochemist Martin Stute, is working closely with colleagues at Lamont-Doherty to understand how the southern hemisphere came out of the last ice…

  • Summer Heat Wave May Have Triggered Landslide on Lonely Alaskan Glacier

    Summer Heat Wave May Have Triggered Landslide on Lonely Alaskan Glacier

    A massive landslide in Alaska’s snowy Wrangell-St. Elias mountain range in July may have been caused by a summer heat wave making some slopes more vulnerable to collapse, says the Lamont-Doherty scientist who first discovered the avalanche.

Banner with images representing environmental issues and text "You Asked: Our Scientists and Experts Answer Your Burning Questions."

You Asked invites you to share your most pressing questions about climate, science, and sustainability. Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory and Columbia Climate School experts will respond with clear, evidence-based answers. Pose your questions and story ideas!

  • West Meets East – Antarctic Forum

    West Meets East – Antarctic Forum

    Remove outside distractions. Place participants in close proximity. Provide opportunities for intellectual stimulation and open dialogue. Promote group activities that are unique and extreme in nature to build common references between the participants. These are the ingredients for structuring an environment for creative group dynamics and problem solving. This is the structure of the Antarctic…

  • Can an Expedition to Antarctica Promote Widespread Change?

    Can an Expedition to Antarctica Promote Widespread Change?

    If you want to excite and inspire people about committing to environmental conservation and harmonious social development, why not load them onto a ship and take them to the ends of the Earth?

  • The Dinosaurs’ Demise Up Close

    The Dinosaurs’ Demise Up Close

    Tourists flock to Italy to see Michelangelo’s David and other iconic hunks of Renaissance stone, but in a trip over spring break, a group of Columbia students got to visit rocks that have shaped the world in even more profound ways.

  • When the Sahara Turned to Sand

    When the Sahara Turned to Sand

    The Sahara wasn’t always a desert. Trees and grasslands dominated the landscape from roughly 10,000 to 5,000 years ago. Then, abruptly, the climate changed. A study by Lamont-Doherty’s Peter deMenocal says it took just a few hundred years to happen.

  • On Nov. 12, Meet Climate Models in New York City

    On Nov. 12, Meet Climate Models in New York City

    Who’s studying Earth’s climate? Why? Where? How? And what are they learning? Panelists will explore these questions and discuss creative methods that can be used to better communicate climate science to the public.

  • The Hottest Thing Since the Hadean Eon

    The Hottest Thing Since the Hadean Eon

    Presenting the 2014 Climate Models wall calendar: the only calendar on Earth that shares the planet’s hottest climate science and the people behind it.

  • The Arctic’s Secret Garden

    The Arctic’s Secret Garden

    Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory marine biologists Craig Aumack and Andy Juhl spend a month each spring in Barrow studying the algae dwelling in and under the sea ice. Their goal is to learn more about the different species of algae that compose these communities and their role in the Arctic marine food web.

  • Exploring New Zealand Climate Change in Groundwater

    Exploring New Zealand Climate Change in Groundwater

    Alan Seltzer, a senior at Columbia University, traveled to New Zealand this past summer to work on field experiments aimed at reconstructing temperatures in the region over the last 20,000 years. His adviser, geochemist Martin Stute, is working closely with colleagues at Lamont-Doherty to understand how the southern hemisphere came out of the last ice…

  • Summer Heat Wave May Have Triggered Landslide on Lonely Alaskan Glacier

    Summer Heat Wave May Have Triggered Landslide on Lonely Alaskan Glacier

    A massive landslide in Alaska’s snowy Wrangell-St. Elias mountain range in July may have been caused by a summer heat wave making some slopes more vulnerable to collapse, says the Lamont-Doherty scientist who first discovered the avalanche.