LDEO May 2025 Newsletter: Earth & Environmental Science News
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Delving Deep
During a career that began in the early 1960s at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, marine geologist William B.F. Ryan has delved into countless mysteries of the deep sea. Early on, he pioneered sonar equipment that allowed scientists to see small but significant ocean-bed features that previously went undetected. On dozens of research cruises, he has explored submarine plains, canyons, and volcanoes, and advanced bold ideas about them. From the results of Leg 13 of the Deep Sea Drilling Project, Bill Ryan, with Ken Hsü and Maria Bianca Cita, discovered that the Mediterranean Sea dried up around 5.5 million years ago when the Strait of Gibraltar closed, leading to evaporation and the deposition of a giant salt layer. Here, Ryan is aboard the French research vessel Le Suroît in the Mediterranean, 2000. Credit: Serge Berné
Science for the Planet: Tackling the Invisible Threat of Nanoplastics
Beizhan Yan, an environmental geochemist at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, has come up with new methods to detect and analyze tiny plastic particles to better understand their impact on human and environmental health.
Mangroves, Tigers and Shopping
Wrapping up their trip, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory geophysicist Mike Steckler and his Sustainable Development program students visited Sundarbans mangrove forest and its wildlife, interviewed villagers, saw historic and cultural sites, shopped, and made their tearful goodbyes.
Global Perspectives: Exploring Sustainable Development in Rwanda and Bangladesh
Columbia Climate School students in two classes partnered with global communities and gained hands-on experience in sustainability.
Columbia Climate School's Seed Grants Advance Interdisciplinary Research
Seven teams will pursue innovative and collaborative research to address urgent climate challenges around the world, including three teams from Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory.
Columbia Beautiful Planet 2025
Each year, we honor Earth Day by sharing some amazing photos celebrating the beauty and magic of our planet, as captured by the Columbia community.
Events
On May 14 12pm ET, join us for Evolving Concerns in Air and Water Pollution with geochemists Steven Chillrud and Beizhan Yan, hosted by Lamont 75th Anniversary Committee co-chair Arthur Lerner-Lam. This event is part of our virtual series Earth Observations: Conversations with Lamont Scientists. Learn More/RSVP
Our special Earth Day event, Shaping the Future of Clean Energy: Insights from the Climate School, highlighted the latest advancements and opportunities in the energy sector from our experts. Watch the Recording
Education
Explore Summer 2025 Pre-College Program at the Columbia Climate School 🌎
Columbia Climate School in the Green Mountains is a 2-week campus-based program for high school students taking place from June 29 to July 11, 2025 in Castleton, Vermont to mobilize action and drive impact in response to our warming planet. Students will complete the program feeling empowered to address a climate challenge in their own communities.
Watch the mini-documentary Empowering Youth to Lead Climate Solutions and see how we're inspiring the next generation of changemakers.
Don’t wait for change — lead it!
Ready to take action? Apply now and become a climate leader!
Climate LIVE K12 features live lectures and interactive activities with our scientists and experts for K-12 students, educators, families, and the public! FREE!
Up Next: On May 14 4-4:30pm ET, join us for The Role of Blue Carbon in Combating Climate Change and Restoring Biodiversity, ideal for high school students and educators, undergraduates, graduate students, and the public. Columbia Climate School MA Climate & Society student Laila Shaban will discuss how seagrass meadows play a key role in carbon sequestration and coastal resilience, and provide examples of restoration projects like carbon credits to biodiversity markets. RSVP today (FREE but registration required)!
And check out our YouTube archive of all past workshops.
On May 24 and 25 10am-2pm ET, you are invited to an online conference about climate change and the environment, hosted by amazing alumni of our Columbia Climate School in the Green Mountains Pre-College program!
Planned by high schoolers, for high schoolers, the conference will feature a series of workshops led by experts from Columbia University and high school students involved in climate work. Register Today!
Questions? Reach out to climatecatalystfoundation@gmail.com.
Saturday, May 24
10-11am: How Can Law and Policy Contribute to Climate Action? (Martin Dietrich Brauch)
11-12pm: Oceans and Climate (Laurel Zaima-Sheehy)
12-1pm: The Climate System and its Societal Impacts (Laurel Anne DiSera)
1-2pm: Climate Work in Progress: Communicating Resilient Initiatives (Joshua DeVincenzo)
Sunday, May 25
10-11am: Finding Climate Solutions Through Research
11-12pm: Exploring Climate Change Through Plastic Pollution
12-1pm: The Resoil Project
1-2pm: Echoes of Extinction: Learning from the Lost
Hudson River Field Station
Community Science Programs at the Field Station
Get involved in our community science projects to learn more about local research, be part of a community, build an appreciation for the natural environment, and work outdoors conducting field work! Programs include easter oyster monitoring, fish diversity and abundance, microplastic survey, plankton survey, marine debris survey, and water quality monitoring.
Upcoming Events at the Field Station
World Fish Migration Day/World Oceans Day, June 7 11am-3pm: Each year several migratory fish species move into the Hudson River as part of an annual journey toward upriver spawning locations. Lamont has partnered with the Hudson River Estuary Program to lead a day that links multiple partners in both celebrating this migration and tallying some of the species as they begin their journey. Join our Piermont Pier location to help pull a net through the water, identify some of these migratory species entering the Hudson River Estuary from the Atlantic Ocean, and learn about how the Hudson is used as a spawning habitat by a range of marine species!
Science Saturdays: Our regular summer Science Saturday events will roll out on June 14th with a new time of 12-4pm! Join us to learn about the Hudson Estuary, get an opportunity to interact with the abundant wildlife that calls the Hudson home, participate in interactive and environmental activities and topics, and learn about the changes and challenges facing our Hudson Estuary.
Questions about community science programs or upcoming events at the Field Station? Contact Marisa Annunziato.
Lamont in the Media (Select Stories)
