State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

old trees

  • For Big, Old Trees, It’s a Downhill Slide When It Comes to Reproduction

    For Big, Old Trees, It’s a Downhill Slide When It Comes to Reproduction

    Akin to humans, the fertility of trees declines with age, a new study indicates.

  • Climate Change and the Re-Greening of Puerto Rico

    Climate Change and the Re-Greening of Puerto Rico

    Ecologist Maria Uriarte investigates the effects of Hurricane Maria on the forests of Puerto Rico, and how long-term climate change may affect them.

  • How Will Shifting Climate Change U.S. Forests?

    How Will Shifting Climate Change U.S. Forests?

    One foggy spring morning just after a hard rain, Park Williams was tromping through the woods deep in Arkansas’ Ozark Mountains. Toiling down a steep slope, he supposedly was keeping a simultaneous eye out for rattlesnakes, copperheads, poison ivy and big old trees. Williams seemed mostly focused on the trees, though; attention to the other…

  • Climate and Conquest: How Did Genghis Khan Rise?

    Climate and Conquest: How Did Genghis Khan Rise?

    Eight hundred years ago, relatively small armies of mounted warriors suddenly exploded outward from the cold, arid high-elevation grasslands of Mongolia and reshaped world geography, culture and history in ways that still resound today. How did they do it?

  • I’ll Go on a Cross-Date if You Show Me Some Rings

    I’ll Go on a Cross-Date if You Show Me Some Rings

    Ever since I’ve started learning to cross-date tree core samples, I’ve learned I have a type. I prefer my tree cores to be black oaks, middle-aged, with some nice big rings to show me. Alright, fine, I can deal with some smaller rings every now and then. As long as they’re some nice marker rings.…

  • ‘Are You Using This Idea for Your Thesis Research?’ [UPDATE]

    ‘Are You Using This Idea for Your Thesis Research?’ [UPDATE]

    “Are you using this idea for your thesis research?” I heard this as I stood in front of a classroom full of old-growth forest ecology students. The question had come from Neil Pederson, who was sitting directly in front of me. He was asking this question because I had just spent the past 12 minutes…

  • Dipping your feet in the water (A first year’s experience with fieldwork)

    Dipping your feet in the water (A first year’s experience with fieldwork)

    My feet are soaking wet and I’m playing a game of Marco Polo, but I’m nowhere near a pool. It’s my second day on the job. It’s my second week of college. I have no idea what to expect.

  • Epic Wetness in Greater NYC, and What Broadleaf Trees Have to Say About It

    Epic Wetness in Greater NYC, and What Broadleaf Trees Have to Say About It

    2012 is turning out to be an exceptional year in the eastern US. Starting out with what was essentially a #YearWithoutaWinter, followed by a heat wave in March, a hot summer, Macoun and Cortland apples coming in 2-3 weeks early, and the continuation of a severe drought in the Southern US that expanded into the Midwest…

  • Finally – Some true Turkish Delight! Discovery of some tasty oaks

    Finally – Some true Turkish Delight! Discovery of some tasty oaks

    After a few days of mild frustration, the sampling of potentially old umbrella pine lifted our spirits and put us in a good frame of mind to conduct our last day of research in the temperate rainforest region of northeastern Turkey. We headed out of Borçka and met with a forest officer in charge of forests…

Colorful banner image over Earth with text "Open House Discover Science, October 19, 2024, 10am to 4pm

Join us on Saturday, October 19, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. for the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory Open House! Celebrate 75 years of science with us at our beautiful Palisades, NY campus. The event is free and open to everyone, with a suggested $5 donation. Learn More and RSVP

  • For Big, Old Trees, It’s a Downhill Slide When It Comes to Reproduction

    For Big, Old Trees, It’s a Downhill Slide When It Comes to Reproduction

    Akin to humans, the fertility of trees declines with age, a new study indicates.

  • Climate Change and the Re-Greening of Puerto Rico

    Climate Change and the Re-Greening of Puerto Rico

    Ecologist Maria Uriarte investigates the effects of Hurricane Maria on the forests of Puerto Rico, and how long-term climate change may affect them.

  • How Will Shifting Climate Change U.S. Forests?

    How Will Shifting Climate Change U.S. Forests?

    One foggy spring morning just after a hard rain, Park Williams was tromping through the woods deep in Arkansas’ Ozark Mountains. Toiling down a steep slope, he supposedly was keeping a simultaneous eye out for rattlesnakes, copperheads, poison ivy and big old trees. Williams seemed mostly focused on the trees, though; attention to the other…

  • Climate and Conquest: How Did Genghis Khan Rise?

    Climate and Conquest: How Did Genghis Khan Rise?

    Eight hundred years ago, relatively small armies of mounted warriors suddenly exploded outward from the cold, arid high-elevation grasslands of Mongolia and reshaped world geography, culture and history in ways that still resound today. How did they do it?

  • I’ll Go on a Cross-Date if You Show Me Some Rings

    I’ll Go on a Cross-Date if You Show Me Some Rings

    Ever since I’ve started learning to cross-date tree core samples, I’ve learned I have a type. I prefer my tree cores to be black oaks, middle-aged, with some nice big rings to show me. Alright, fine, I can deal with some smaller rings every now and then. As long as they’re some nice marker rings.…

  • ‘Are You Using This Idea for Your Thesis Research?’ [UPDATE]

    ‘Are You Using This Idea for Your Thesis Research?’ [UPDATE]

    “Are you using this idea for your thesis research?” I heard this as I stood in front of a classroom full of old-growth forest ecology students. The question had come from Neil Pederson, who was sitting directly in front of me. He was asking this question because I had just spent the past 12 minutes…

  • Dipping your feet in the water (A first year’s experience with fieldwork)

    Dipping your feet in the water (A first year’s experience with fieldwork)

    My feet are soaking wet and I’m playing a game of Marco Polo, but I’m nowhere near a pool. It’s my second day on the job. It’s my second week of college. I have no idea what to expect.

  • Epic Wetness in Greater NYC, and What Broadleaf Trees Have to Say About It

    Epic Wetness in Greater NYC, and What Broadleaf Trees Have to Say About It

    2012 is turning out to be an exceptional year in the eastern US. Starting out with what was essentially a #YearWithoutaWinter, followed by a heat wave in March, a hot summer, Macoun and Cortland apples coming in 2-3 weeks early, and the continuation of a severe drought in the Southern US that expanded into the Midwest…

  • Finally – Some true Turkish Delight! Discovery of some tasty oaks

    Finally – Some true Turkish Delight! Discovery of some tasty oaks

    After a few days of mild frustration, the sampling of potentially old umbrella pine lifted our spirits and put us in a good frame of mind to conduct our last day of research in the temperate rainforest region of northeastern Turkey. We headed out of Borçka and met with a forest officer in charge of forests…