Research News All

A new study is the latest and perhaps most convincing indication that climate change is eating the Himalayas’ glaciers, potentially threatening water supplies for hundreds of millions of people downstream across much of Asia.

Research by Lamont’s Johnny Kingslake and Elizabeth Case advances understanding of ice sheet dynamics and how our world may change in the coming centuries.

The three new Fellows, all scientists at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, will pursue high-risk, high-reward research that furthers understanding of how climate change impacts human sustainability.

The annual survey of biodiversity in New York City’s waterways had a great turnout on Saturday.

ROSETTA-Ice project reveals that local ocean currents may play a critical role in the ice shelf’s future retreat.

A new study finds that as air circulation patterns change with the climate, coastal states could get hit with stronger hurricanes.

The Antarctic Circumpolar Current is the planet’s most powerful and arguably most important. It is the only one to flow clear around the globe without getting diverted by any landmass, sending up to 150 times the flow of all the world’s rivers clockwise around the frozen continent. 

In an unusual new study, scientists say they have detected a growing fingerprint of human-driven global warming on global drought conditions starting as far back as 1900.

Columbia Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory seismologist Göran Ekström has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences.

A Lamont climate researcher breaks down why our atmosphere is the way it is, how it’s changed over time, and what the future may hold.

The new findings offer clues about how the solar system formed and how rocky planets change over time.

In celebration of Earth Month and Earth Day, our scientists are tackling reader questions on science and sustainability.

The paleoclimatologist and marine geologist talks about why the miles and miles of marine sediment samples in Lamont’s Core Repository are so important.

New research shows that the Larsen C ice shelf—the fourth largest ice shelf in Antarctica, located just south of the former Larsen B shelf—experienced an unusual spike in late summer and early autumn surface melting in the years 2015 to 2017.

This year’s theme encourages students to explore the relationship between human beings and water through various art forms.

A team of scientists working in Antarctica faces a host of new challenges.

Equipped with a field testing kit originally developed within Columbia’s Earth Institute, the “Lead-Free Kids Peru” project has tested hundreds of soil samples for the toxic metal — and dug up some startling results in the process.

Scientists from NASA’s MESSENGER mission share some of its top discoveries — and lingering mysteries — in a new compendium.

In the early spring, volcanologists monitoring the ground around Kilauea, the most active volcano on the island of Hawai’i, noticed a significant increase in seismicity, a sign of an impending eruption. Meanwhile, in Palisades, New York, Lamont volcanologist Einat Lev was also watching developments at Kilauea closely, scanning United States Geological Survey (USGS) reports and keeping in regular touch with friends and colleagues directly tasked with monitoring volcanic activity.

A discussion on the challenges women scientists often face, and what we can all do to help.

Rainy weather is becoming increasingly common over parts of the Greenland ice sheet, triggering sudden melting events that are eating at the ice and priming the surface for more widespread future melting, says a new study.

Satellite imagery of earth’s vegetation, measurements of carbon dioxide in the air and computer models all help scientists understand how climate is affecting carbon dynamics and the world’s forests.

Newly analyzed drill cores taken from the bottom of Greece’s Gulf of Corinth show that sediment flow into the basin has varied dramatically over the past 500,000-plus years, as the earth passed in and out of ice ages, and humans later dominated the surrounding landscape.

In a hearing before the House Subcommittee on Environment, Radley Horton delivered sobering remarks about how climate change will impact our coastlines, economy, and society at large.

On February 21, scientists learned the essentials of science communication during a half-day workshop at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory.

Tributes continue pouring in as Lamont mourns the loss of Wally Broecker "grandfather of climate science."

A new study shows that phosphorus and nitrogen should be reduced to mitigate harmful algae blooms in coastal NY waters.

Attaching the sensors that will help us study erosion rates required vacuum grease, patience, and a lot of masking tape.

On the volcanic Indian Ocean island of Anjouan, scientists are investigating a rock that apparently formed on a far-off continent.

After bad weather and a busy week of packing and preparation, the team is finally ready to strike out on its own in the coldest, driest, and windiest place on the planet.

The team is using two techniques to study weathering and erosion in Antarctica’s McMurdo Dry Valleys.

The Real-Time Earth initiative is upgrading the technological capabilities of Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory and transforming the way its scientists study our planet.

Fieldwork in Antarctica adds a whole new layer to the meaning of planning. When heavily field based projects are planned, it is common for preliminary fieldwork to precede the larger project.

A team of autonomous ocean robots deployed in January 2018 has carried out the first year-long observations under an Antarctic ice shelf.

On every continent and every ocean, Earth Institute researchers are studying climate, geology, natural hazards and other dynamics of the planet. Here is a list of projects in rough chronological order for the coming year and beyond.

The North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) is considered a key driver of winter weather patterns over the northern hemisphere. In recent years, research has claimed a correlation between the NAO and the 11-year solar cycle. A new paper debunks that claim.

Inside the Rock and Ice Mechanics Lab, Heather Savage and her team investigate the physics of earthquakes and fault lines.

What’s a bog corer? And how do seeds help scientists learn about the earth’s past? A paleoecologist explains the most important items in her toolkit.

The current megadrought in the American West may be one of the most severe in the past 1200 years—and climate change is partially to blame.

But there’s a pretty simple solution that could protect a lot of people.

The American Geophysical Union fall meeting is being held Dec. 10-14 in Washington, D.C. Here is a chronological guide to key talks and other events from Columbia University’s Earth Institute.

A concerted, multidisciplinary, and international effort is needed to tackle this complexity, scientists argue in a paper released today.

A guide to wildfire experts at the Earth Institute.

I had one last day installing seismometers with the team, then left for Mandalay. After a breakfast with colleagues, I had a free day to explore Mandalay Hill.

On the way back to Kale, we stopped at a Catholic church where one of the seismometers will be deployed. The seismic team is now in Nay Pyi Taw, the capital preparing for the seismic instrument deployment. 

We drove 15 hours over two days to get to Kale, our new home base. Here, we managed to build a monument and install our first GPS station in only one day. Our homemade post-driver worked amazingly well.

The Trump administration is attempting to rescind almost all the policies to fight climate change proposed or enacted by the Obama administration. Could this send us over the climate tipping points?

The Global Famine of 1876-1878 was one of the worst humanitarian disasters in history, killing as many people as World War II. A new analysis suggests it could happen again, only worse because of climate change.

A small team of scientists ventures out onto the Greenland ice sheet to study the forces large and small that are accelerating the melting of the world’s second-largest ice mass.