State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory34

  • Start of the Mini-Field School

    Start of the Mini-Field School

    We were joined in our electromagnetic investigation of the subsurface and earthquake hazard by a group of US and Bangladeshi students and professors for a mini-Field School.

  • Lazy Bears and Confused Birds: What a Warming Planet Means for Wildlife

    Lazy Bears and Confused Birds: What a Warming Planet Means for Wildlife

    In the Arctic, climate change is upsetting the migratory rhythms of many species, disrupting pollinators, and spelling trouble for ecosystems around the world.

  • Tea Gardens to the Rescue

    Tea Gardens to the Rescue

    We switched to deploying our equipment for imaging faults and the structure beneath the surface to tea gardens to get away from power lines and buried the cables to protect them from gnawing foxes.

  • Dealing With Rain and Rats

    Dealing With Rain and Rats

    As we continued our geophysical measurements, we had to deal with heavy rains, flooding fields, and rats and foxes biting our cables. Many cables were broken soon after sunset, ruining the measurements.

  • In Sediments Below Antarctic Ice, Scientists Discover a Giant Groundwater System

    In Sediments Below Antarctic Ice, Scientists Discover a Giant Groundwater System

    For the first time, scientists have mapped in detail water locked in a deep basin far under the Antarctic ice. The discovery could have implications for how the continent reacts to, or even contributes to, climate change.

  • Fieldwork in Bangladesh During the End of Ramadan and Eid Festival

    Fieldwork in Bangladesh During the End of Ramadan and Eid Festival

    We have come to in Bangladesh in the pre-monsoon heat to better image the active faults beneath the surface using electromagnetic instruments. We are using the fallow fields from the just-harvested rice crop for our sites.

  • Climate School Dean Receives Environmental Champion Award

    Climate School Dean Receives Environmental Champion Award

    Maureen Raymo, co-founding dean of the Columbia Climate School and director at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, received an Environmental Champion Award from NY State Senator Elijah Reichlin-Melnick. 

  • What Is Decarbonization, and How Do We Make It Happen?

    What Is Decarbonization, and How Do We Make It Happen?

    To keep the planet from warming more than 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, economies must rapidly decarbonize. What will this involve?

  • Behind the Podcast ‘How We Got Here’

    Behind the Podcast ‘How We Got Here’

    Scientists Stephanie Spera and Rachel Lupien demystify how different professionals are addressing the climate crisis, one career path and podcast episode at a time.

Composite banner with modern building at night and portrait of Dean Alexis Abramson that reads "Science for the Planet"

By studying thousands of buildings and analyzing their electricity use, Columbia Climate School Dean Alexis Abramson has been able to uncover ways to significantly cut energy consumption and emissions. Watch the Video: “Engineering a Cooler Future Through Smarter Buildings

  • Start of the Mini-Field School

    Start of the Mini-Field School

    We were joined in our electromagnetic investigation of the subsurface and earthquake hazard by a group of US and Bangladeshi students and professors for a mini-Field School.

  • Lazy Bears and Confused Birds: What a Warming Planet Means for Wildlife

    Lazy Bears and Confused Birds: What a Warming Planet Means for Wildlife

    In the Arctic, climate change is upsetting the migratory rhythms of many species, disrupting pollinators, and spelling trouble for ecosystems around the world.

  • Tea Gardens to the Rescue

    Tea Gardens to the Rescue

    We switched to deploying our equipment for imaging faults and the structure beneath the surface to tea gardens to get away from power lines and buried the cables to protect them from gnawing foxes.

  • Dealing With Rain and Rats

    Dealing With Rain and Rats

    As we continued our geophysical measurements, we had to deal with heavy rains, flooding fields, and rats and foxes biting our cables. Many cables were broken soon after sunset, ruining the measurements.

  • In Sediments Below Antarctic Ice, Scientists Discover a Giant Groundwater System

    In Sediments Below Antarctic Ice, Scientists Discover a Giant Groundwater System

    For the first time, scientists have mapped in detail water locked in a deep basin far under the Antarctic ice. The discovery could have implications for how the continent reacts to, or even contributes to, climate change.

  • Fieldwork in Bangladesh During the End of Ramadan and Eid Festival

    Fieldwork in Bangladesh During the End of Ramadan and Eid Festival

    We have come to in Bangladesh in the pre-monsoon heat to better image the active faults beneath the surface using electromagnetic instruments. We are using the fallow fields from the just-harvested rice crop for our sites.

  • Climate School Dean Receives Environmental Champion Award

    Climate School Dean Receives Environmental Champion Award

    Maureen Raymo, co-founding dean of the Columbia Climate School and director at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, received an Environmental Champion Award from NY State Senator Elijah Reichlin-Melnick. 

  • What Is Decarbonization, and How Do We Make It Happen?

    What Is Decarbonization, and How Do We Make It Happen?

    To keep the planet from warming more than 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, economies must rapidly decarbonize. What will this involve?

  • Behind the Podcast ‘How We Got Here’

    Behind the Podcast ‘How We Got Here’

    Scientists Stephanie Spera and Rachel Lupien demystify how different professionals are addressing the climate crisis, one career path and podcast episode at a time.