State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory81

  • Where Science Meets Policy: Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory Hosts Environmental Policy Students

    Where Science Meets Policy: Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory Hosts Environmental Policy Students

    As part of the MPA in Environmental Science and Policy, students undertake science courses that will serve as a foundational basis for tackling policy issues. Who better to learn from than the individuals who dominate earth science research?

  • Photo Essay: Living on the Ice in Juneau, Alaska

    Photo Essay: Living on the Ice in Juneau, Alaska

    We’re developing a technique that uses ice-penetrating radar to measure how quickly snow turns to ice. To take our measurements, we needed to camp out in the Juneau icefields for a few weeks.

  • Hiron Point Once More

    Hiron Point Once More

    We sailed to Hiron Point in the Sundarban Mangrove Forest to upgrade old and install new equipment. I have been to this beautiful remote site several times before. After competing the work, we sailed for over a day to reach our next site on a primary school roof.

  • The Climate Epochs That Weren’t

    The Climate Epochs That Weren’t

    Climate scientists often invoke the Medieval Warm Period and the Little Ice Age as natural worldwide climate swings predating human influences. They may not have worked the way we think.

  • Climate Change Could Revive Medieval Megadroughts in U.S. Southwest

    Climate Change Could Revive Medieval Megadroughts in U.S. Southwest

    Study picks apart factors that caused severe, long-lasting droughts and suggests increased risk for future.

  • From Sonatola to the Sundarbans

    From Sonatola to the Sundarbans

    By working a 16-hour day, we managed to get both GPS and SETs completed at our first field site. We then sailed into the Sundarban Mangrove Forest, the world’s largest, to visit an existing site and make measurements.

  • Delays in Dhaka

    Delays in Dhaka

    I am back in Bangladesh for a new project examining the balance between sea level rise, land subsidence and sedimentation. We will be installing, repairing or upgrading equipment to measure changes to the landscape.

  • Robots Roaming in Antarctic Waters Reveal Why Ross Ice Shelf Melts Rapidly in Summer

    Robots Roaming in Antarctic Waters Reveal Why Ross Ice Shelf Melts Rapidly in Summer

    A new study reveals how local factors influence the Ross Ice Shelf’s stability, refining predictions of how it will change and influence sea rise in the future.

  • How Did Africa’s Grasslands Get Started?

    How Did Africa’s Grasslands Get Started?

    Millions of years ago, vegetation across much of the world underwent a transformation as grasses with a new way of doing photosynthesis displaced previously dominant plants, shrubs and trees. A new study examines what got these plants started, and why they spread so far and wide.

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!

  • Where Science Meets Policy: Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory Hosts Environmental Policy Students

    Where Science Meets Policy: Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory Hosts Environmental Policy Students

    As part of the MPA in Environmental Science and Policy, students undertake science courses that will serve as a foundational basis for tackling policy issues. Who better to learn from than the individuals who dominate earth science research?

  • Photo Essay: Living on the Ice in Juneau, Alaska

    Photo Essay: Living on the Ice in Juneau, Alaska

    We’re developing a technique that uses ice-penetrating radar to measure how quickly snow turns to ice. To take our measurements, we needed to camp out in the Juneau icefields for a few weeks.

  • Hiron Point Once More

    Hiron Point Once More

    We sailed to Hiron Point in the Sundarban Mangrove Forest to upgrade old and install new equipment. I have been to this beautiful remote site several times before. After competing the work, we sailed for over a day to reach our next site on a primary school roof.

  • The Climate Epochs That Weren’t

    The Climate Epochs That Weren’t

    Climate scientists often invoke the Medieval Warm Period and the Little Ice Age as natural worldwide climate swings predating human influences. They may not have worked the way we think.

  • Climate Change Could Revive Medieval Megadroughts in U.S. Southwest

    Climate Change Could Revive Medieval Megadroughts in U.S. Southwest

    Study picks apart factors that caused severe, long-lasting droughts and suggests increased risk for future.

  • From Sonatola to the Sundarbans

    From Sonatola to the Sundarbans

    By working a 16-hour day, we managed to get both GPS and SETs completed at our first field site. We then sailed into the Sundarban Mangrove Forest, the world’s largest, to visit an existing site and make measurements.

  • Delays in Dhaka

    Delays in Dhaka

    I am back in Bangladesh for a new project examining the balance between sea level rise, land subsidence and sedimentation. We will be installing, repairing or upgrading equipment to measure changes to the landscape.

  • Robots Roaming in Antarctic Waters Reveal Why Ross Ice Shelf Melts Rapidly in Summer

    Robots Roaming in Antarctic Waters Reveal Why Ross Ice Shelf Melts Rapidly in Summer

    A new study reveals how local factors influence the Ross Ice Shelf’s stability, refining predictions of how it will change and influence sea rise in the future.

  • How Did Africa’s Grasslands Get Started?

    How Did Africa’s Grasslands Get Started?

    Millions of years ago, vegetation across much of the world underwent a transformation as grasses with a new way of doing photosynthesis displaced previously dominant plants, shrubs and trees. A new study examines what got these plants started, and why they spread so far and wide.