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December 2017
It has been an extraordinary year of exploration and discovery at Lamont. This article, tracing the work of Lamont Associate Research Professor Kevin Uno and his colleagues, is among a collection of stories describing our 2017 research from our annual report.
Lamont Associate Research Professor Kevin Uno and his colleagues are examining the isotopic signatures of buried biomarkers and fossil teeth in eastern Africa from the past several tens of millions of years, searching for signatures of past climate change on the evolution of vegetation and the diets of the region’s mammals, including the ancestors of modern humans. The team’s early findings give us new information about the genesis of human life and raise fascinating new questions.
Ocean Sediments off Pacific Coast May Feed Tsunami Danger
Tightly consolidated sediments along a portion of the Cascadia Subduction Zone contribute to locking of the fault along the plate boundary for long intervals, major earthquakes, and the potential for a large tsunami.
Where Is All That Carbon Dioxide Going?
Concurrent with the announcement that human carbon emissions reached a new peak this year, Galen McKinley, a professor at Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, was interviewed about the difficulties of tracking the sources and destinations of carbon dioxide.
What We Know About Medicanes
Medicanes – hurricane-like storms in the Mediterranean – are rare but can be dangerous, as demonstrated by Medicane Numa’s path of destruction in Greece.
Lamont to Harvest Sunshine from Solar Farm
Two solar array farms in Orange County, New York, will be completed at the end of November, poised to provide power to and reduce the carbon footprint of the Lamont Campus.
NASA Finds New Way to Track Ozone by Satellite
Researchers have devised a way to use satellite measurements of the precursor gases that contribute to ozone formation to predict when and where ozone will form.
Ear to the Ground, Listening for Nuclear Blasts
Lamont seismologist Lynn Sykes has been working for more than 50 years to halt the testing of nuclear weapons. His work, along with that of others, has demonstrated that clandestine underground tests can be detected and measured with seismic waves.
From the Field
Decoding the Mysteries of the Ross Ice Shelf - Follow Lamont graduate student Julian Spergel’s “on the ground” report as he and the Rosetta Ice team undertake an important expedition to Antarctica.
Lamont in the News
Substantial Acceleration in Sea Level Rise along Portions of the US East Coast since Late 20th Century - Accuweather
Pacific Northwest May Be at Risk for ‘Big One’ Because of Seafloor Sediments - Newsweek
Could Tweaking the Atmosphere Help Us Fight Climate Change? - NPR Science Friday
Lead Poisoning Lurks in Scores of New York Neighborhoods - Reuters
How Warmer Winters Affect Our Planet - PBS
An Expedition Braves Arctic Perils for Climate Science - National Geographic
Greenland Melt Speeds East Coast Sea-Level Rise - NASA
The Climate Risks We Face - New York Times
