ClimateBook
@climatebook.bsky.social
This is the BlueSky feed of Raymond T. Pierrehumbert, Professor of Planetary Physics at the University of Oxford. Tune in for news about Principles of Planetary Climate, and diverse science and political commentary. (Also folk music news)
Reposted by ClimateBook
"The reason that I say [Big Car is] an existential threat, and it still is, is that cars kill an exorbitant number of people. There's no other industry in the world that kills the number of people that cars do that are allowed to call it an 'accident.'" —David Obst
Since the invention of the car, somewhere between 54 and 69 million people have died in traffic crashes. And that's not even considering the effects of air pollution and car-related lead exposure.
@jessimckenzi.bsky.social interviews David Obst about his new book, "Saving Ourselves From Big Car."
@jessimckenzi.bsky.social interviews David Obst about his new book, "Saving Ourselves From Big Car."
How 'Big Car' poses an existential threat to humanity
While Big Car kills many of us quickly, it is killing more of us slowly, by polluting the environment, warming the Earth, sowing misinformation and doubt about climate…
thebulletin.org
November 21, 2025 at 9:58 PM
"The reason that I say [Big Car is] an existential threat, and it still is, is that cars kill an exorbitant number of people. There's no other industry in the world that kills the number of people that cars do that are allowed to call it an 'accident.'" —David Obst
Are you an early-career researcher who would like to work with me at MIT? The MIT Distinguished Postdoctoral Program is still open (Nov. 30 deadline, so hurry!) Details are here:
eaps.mit.edu/research/pos...
eaps.mit.edu/research/pos...
Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellowships Program
Competitive fellowships supporting exceptional early-career scientists. The EAPS Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellowship Program attracts researchers with interests in the broad range of disciplines rep...
eaps.mit.edu
November 20, 2025 at 8:05 PM
Are you an early-career researcher who would like to work with me at MIT? The MIT Distinguished Postdoctoral Program is still open (Nov. 30 deadline, so hurry!) Details are here:
eaps.mit.edu/research/pos...
eaps.mit.edu/research/pos...
For those who don't read Swedish, this interesting post summarizes the Aftonbladet article claiming that net CO2 emissions from Sweden have increased by a factor of 5 in the past 10 years. I read the Aftonbladet article, and this is all about Sweden's use of forest-derived biofuel.
"Sverige beskrivs som en klimathjälte. Men nettoutsläppen från Sverige har ökat med 500 procent de senaste tio åren."
www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/a/Jb...
www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/a/Jb...
Klimatkurvan chockar – ”Extremt oroande”
Sverige beskrivs som en klimathjälte. Men nettoutsläppen från Sverige har ökat med 500 procent de senaste tio åren, visar Aftonbladets sammanställning. – Väldig
www.aftonbladet.se
November 19, 2025 at 10:06 AM
For those who don't read Swedish, this interesting post summarizes the Aftonbladet article claiming that net CO2 emissions from Sweden have increased by a factor of 5 in the past 10 years. I read the Aftonbladet article, and this is all about Sweden's use of forest-derived biofuel.
Reposted by ClimateBook
"Bill Gates' climate comments are a distraction" | My new commentary for @nature.com: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
November 18, 2025 at 7:54 PM
"Bill Gates' climate comments are a distraction" | My new commentary for @nature.com: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Reposted by ClimateBook
Research and development of CO₂ removal (CDR) should be a government-led effort, but all the people who were experts in various aspects of CDR in the US government are gone.
November 13, 2025 at 6:02 PM
Research and development of CO₂ removal (CDR) should be a government-led effort, but all the people who were experts in various aspects of CDR in the US government are gone.
#AbSciCon2026 Our session proposal on identifying conditions for habitable subNeptunes has been accepted, and abstract submissions are open through Wednesday 14 January. Session details are here:
agu.confex.com/agu/abscicon...
agu.confex.com/agu/abscicon...
Habitable subNeptunes: Theory and prospects for observational identification
subNeptunes have emerged as a fruitful target for atmospheric characterization, with several robust identifications of atmospheric constituents and mean molecular weight already in hand. Linked topic...
agu.confex.com
November 13, 2025 at 9:25 PM
#AbSciCon2026 Our session proposal on identifying conditions for habitable subNeptunes has been accepted, and abstract submissions are open through Wednesday 14 January. Session details are here:
agu.confex.com/agu/abscicon...
agu.confex.com/agu/abscicon...
New article from the Solar Geoengineering Non Use Agreement team: "Solar Geoengineering for Profit" (Spoiler -- we're against it.) www.solargeoeng.org/solar-geoeng...
Solar geoengineering for profit - Solar Geoengineering Non-Use Agreement
Advocates of solar geoengineering are dismayed. But why are they surprised?
www.solargeoeng.org
November 13, 2025 at 2:46 PM
New article from the Solar Geoengineering Non Use Agreement team: "Solar Geoengineering for Profit" (Spoiler -- we're against it.) www.solargeoeng.org/solar-geoeng...
To all Dems: Stand firm for health care. Don't cave. Any promise Trump makes can't be trusted.
Any “deal” that ends with Dems just getting a pinky promise in return is a mistake.
The American people are suffering because Republicans refuse to stop healthcare costs from skyrocketing. An agreement that doesn’t fix that reality falls massively short.
The American people are suffering because Republicans refuse to stop healthcare costs from skyrocketing. An agreement that doesn’t fix that reality falls massively short.
November 9, 2025 at 8:57 PM
To all Dems: Stand firm for health care. Don't cave. Any promise Trump makes can't be trusted.
This is a really brilliant animation, showing how global warming has increased the probabilities of extreme heat. Note how it's not just a matter of a shift in the mean -- the distribution has gotten broader. Probably not enough data yet to tell if the tails have gotten fatter.
Exactly! Which makes the real climate shift way scarier. Like shown by the data from svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5452/
November 8, 2025 at 10:55 AM
This is a really brilliant animation, showing how global warming has increased the probabilities of extreme heat. Note how it's not just a matter of a shift in the mean -- the distribution has gotten broader. Probably not enough data yet to tell if the tails have gotten fatter.
To all my melodeon friends: Bellows and Buttons is bringing its all-levels workshop to Oxford again next week. www.bellowsandbuttons.co.uk/courses/o25i... Note especially the session at The Plough Friday night 14 Nov., and the instructors concert Saturday, available even
Bellows and Buttons
www.bellowsandbuttons.co.uk
November 6, 2025 at 12:05 PM
To all my melodeon friends: Bellows and Buttons is bringing its all-levels workshop to Oxford again next week. www.bellowsandbuttons.co.uk/courses/o25i... Note especially the session at The Plough Friday night 14 Nov., and the instructors concert Saturday, available even
The PRI Museum of the Earth, in Ithaca New York, is one of the great museums of the East Coast, punching way above its size and with an incomparable research collection. Help save them! www.priweb.org/mortgage-cam...
Mortgage Campaign Landing Page — Paleontological Research Institution
www.priweb.org
November 5, 2025 at 8:47 PM
The PRI Museum of the Earth, in Ithaca New York, is one of the great museums of the East Coast, punching way above its size and with an incomparable research collection. Help save them! www.priweb.org/mortgage-cam...
One of the rare occasions when I have some common ground with David Keith, but I'm not confident David and I are aligned on what would count as "responsible" research. To state my position briefly, computer simulatons are fuzzy territory for "responsibility," but
In this opinion piece, two scientists argue that the growing commercial efforts to counter climate change by reflecting away sunlight will thwart responsible research in the field.
Why the for-profit race into solar geoengineering is bad for science and public trust
Two scientists argue that the growing commercial efforts to counter climate change by reflecting away sunlight will thwart responsible research in the field.
www.technologyreview.com
November 5, 2025 at 11:22 AM
One of the rare occasions when I have some common ground with David Keith, but I'm not confident David and I are aligned on what would count as "responsible" research. To state my position briefly, computer simulatons are fuzzy territory for "responsibility," but
This is a useful piece on the Royal Society's solar geoengineering report, indicating that the report contains enough caveats that press can pick up on the dangers. One wonders, though, if there are any "right hands" that a technology like SRM can be put into.
Solar #geoengineering in wrong hands could wreak climate havoc, scientists warn
Blocking the sun may reduce global heating – but ‘rogue actor’ could cause drought or more hurricanes, @royalsociety.org report finds
Story by me
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Blocking the sun may reduce global heating – but ‘rogue actor’ could cause drought or more hurricanes, @royalsociety.org report finds
Story by me
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Solar geoengineering in wrong hands could wreak climate havoc, scientists warn
Blocking the sun may reduce global heating – but ‘rogue actor’ could cause drought or more hurricanes, report finds
www.theguardian.com
November 5, 2025 at 10:31 AM
This is a useful piece on the Royal Society's solar geoengineering report, indicating that the report contains enough caveats that press can pick up on the dangers. One wonders, though, if there are any "right hands" that a technology like SRM can be put into.
Reposted by ClimateBook
UT Austin Habitability Prize Postdoctoral Fellowship
astrobiology.com/2025/11/ut-a... #astrobiology #exoplanet
astrobiology.com/2025/11/ut-a... #astrobiology #exoplanet
UT Austin Habitability Prize Postdoctoral Fellowship - Astrobiology
institutional prize postdoctoral fellowship
astrobiology.com
November 3, 2025 at 7:17 PM
UT Austin Habitability Prize Postdoctoral Fellowship
astrobiology.com/2025/11/ut-a... #astrobiology #exoplanet
astrobiology.com/2025/11/ut-a... #astrobiology #exoplanet
World premier Saturday 29 November, of The Exoplanets, composed by my colleague composer Robert Laidlow, and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra at Royal Festival Hall. Some background on the genesis of the piece is here: www.jesus.ox.ac.uk/astrophysics...
Astrophysics chat inspires Fellow’s new musical work – Jesus College
www.jesus.ox.ac.uk
November 4, 2025 at 11:12 AM
World premier Saturday 29 November, of The Exoplanets, composed by my colleague composer Robert Laidlow, and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra at Royal Festival Hall. Some background on the genesis of the piece is here: www.jesus.ox.ac.uk/astrophysics...
Another good way to help local bookstores, when you can't find what you want in your neighbourhood shop and they can't order it in for you, is to use Alibris. Their specialty is used books, but they have some new material as well. The main thing is that many independent booksellers supplement their
I do not buy books from Amazon.
Local book stores. @bookshop.org @indiebound.bsky.social even @barnesandnoble.com for some e-books.
We buy other stuff from Amazon when it is unavoidable. Which thanks to monopoly, is a lot of the time.
For books I look for every alternative.
Local book stores. @bookshop.org @indiebound.bsky.social even @barnesandnoble.com for some e-books.
We buy other stuff from Amazon when it is unavoidable. Which thanks to monopoly, is a lot of the time.
For books I look for every alternative.
Amazon is helping fund a $300 million build of a ballroom for the White House.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
November 1, 2025 at 3:07 PM
Another good way to help local bookstores, when you can't find what you want in your neighbourhood shop and they can't order it in for you, is to use Alibris. Their specialty is used books, but they have some new material as well. The main thing is that many independent booksellers supplement their
This is good advice. I have gone back to buying physical DVD's rather than streaming, and for folks in the UK and many other places I've found HMV to be a good source of DVD's online or in physical stores. There are streaming sources other than Amazon, but a lot of
I do not buy books from Amazon.
Local book stores. @bookshop.org @indiebound.bsky.social even @barnesandnoble.com for some e-books.
We buy other stuff from Amazon when it is unavoidable. Which thanks to monopoly, is a lot of the time.
For books I look for every alternative.
Local book stores. @bookshop.org @indiebound.bsky.social even @barnesandnoble.com for some e-books.
We buy other stuff from Amazon when it is unavoidable. Which thanks to monopoly, is a lot of the time.
For books I look for every alternative.
Amazon is helping fund a $300 million build of a ballroom for the White House.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
November 1, 2025 at 2:05 PM
This is good advice. I have gone back to buying physical DVD's rather than streaming, and for folks in the UK and many other places I've found HMV to be a good source of DVD's online or in physical stores. There are streaming sources other than Amazon, but a lot of
I enjoyed all my visits to the PRI during the time I was making frequent visits to Cornell. It's an astounding place, and in a compact collection, rivals much bigger museums like the Field Museum for the understanding of the sweep of Earth history it conveys. They deserve our support.
Loosing the PRI would devastate US science. Any level donation, spreading the word helps. #FossilFriday #SaveScience
priweb.donorsupport.co/page/FUNWALK...
priweb.donorsupport.co/page/FUNWALK...
Save the Museum of the Earth – Secure Its Future!
In these challenging times, places like the Paleontological Research Institution (PRI) stand as beacons of hope, fostering understanding of the natural world and inspiring action for a sustainable fut...
priweb.donorsupport.co
October 30, 2025 at 9:37 PM
I enjoyed all my visits to the PRI during the time I was making frequent visits to Cornell. It's an astounding place, and in a compact collection, rivals much bigger museums like the Field Museum for the understanding of the sweep of Earth history it conveys. They deserve our support.
Illinois friends -- please vote for Daniel! He's one of the good ones, and I've seen him in action for a long time. He's the best of the bunch running for Jan's seat. I live abroad now, but vote absentee in Daniel's district, and he has my vote.
As a Senator, I helped to pass the Illinois Secure Choice program, providing hundreds of thousands of Illinoisans a shot at a dignified retirement. This set a precedent, with almost 20 other states following suit.
I am asking you to put me in Congress because I want to continue to fight for you.
I am asking you to put me in Congress because I want to continue to fight for you.
October 30, 2025 at 9:20 PM
Illinois friends -- please vote for Daniel! He's one of the good ones, and I've seen him in action for a long time. He's the best of the bunch running for Jan's seat. I live abroad now, but vote absentee in Daniel's district, and he has my vote.
Reposted by ClimateBook
My new essay on the future of life in space just appeared in Noema magazine! Kudos to Satwika Kresna for the lovely artwork.
“If building space habitats is hard & machine technology is gradually developing more life-like capabilities, does this mean we humans might as well remain Earth-bound forever?”
— @rdword.bsky.social
#spacetravel #spaceexploration #rovers
— @rdword.bsky.social
#spacetravel #spaceexploration #rovers
The Future Of Space Is More Than Human | NOEMA
The time has come to expand our visions of life beyond Earth.
www.noemamag.com
October 30, 2025 at 7:42 PM
My new essay on the future of life in space just appeared in Noema magazine! Kudos to Satwika Kresna for the lovely artwork.
The Collatz conjecture is endlessly fascinating, and anything that combines Collatz with Turing machines attracts my attention. Collatz is essentially a halting problem.
For the uninitiated: The busy beaver problem is an extremely compelling, Conway-esque expedition into the daunting wilds of the finite, and you couldn't ask for a better guide than Ben.
Strongly recommend.
Strongly recommend.
I published a new post on my rarely updated personal blog! It's a sequel of sorts to my Quanta coverage of the Busy Beaver game, focusing on a particularly fearsome Turing machine known by the awesome name Antihydra.
October 30, 2025 at 9:06 PM
The Collatz conjecture is endlessly fascinating, and anything that combines Collatz with Turing machines attracts my attention. Collatz is essentially a halting problem.
Reposted by ClimateBook
Exoplanet atmosphere characterization is built on a foundation of lab data and chemistry. We need more reaction rates, cross sections, & line lists, at a broader range of conditions than the Solar System. Got together with Earth/planetary scientists to comment on this: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
How to understand exoplanets — space scientists call on lab-based chemists to help
Stronger links between researchers who work on Earth’s and other planets’ atmospheres, and between the experimental, modelling and observational communities, will help to interpret the astronomical da...
www.nature.com
October 30, 2025 at 7:58 AM
Exoplanet atmosphere characterization is built on a foundation of lab data and chemistry. We need more reaction rates, cross sections, & line lists, at a broader range of conditions than the Solar System. Got together with Earth/planetary scientists to comment on this: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
This is a new low for journalism, perpetrated by The Times, in which their reporter got duped by a Bill Blasio impostor trashing leading NYC mayoral candidate Mandani . As reported by The Guardian. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
UK newspaper apologizes for fake De Blasio interview criticizing Mamdani
The Times deletes article after its reporter was duped by impostor pretending to be former New York mayor
www.theguardian.com
October 29, 2025 at 7:49 PM
This is a new low for journalism, perpetrated by The Times, in which their reporter got duped by a Bill Blasio impostor trashing leading NYC mayoral candidate Mandani . As reported by The Guardian. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
I decided not to submit an NSF proposal this fall to support my future work at MIT, because of all the uncertainty surrounding how NSF is going to operate, but I will need to turn to NSF funding at some point. I would be interested to hear experiences of people who submitted to the NSF recently.
October 29, 2025 at 5:10 PM
I decided not to submit an NSF proposal this fall to support my future work at MIT, because of all the uncertainty surrounding how NSF is going to operate, but I will need to turn to NSF funding at some point. I would be interested to hear experiences of people who submitted to the NSF recently.
For the record, I don't think it likely that global warming alone could cause extinction of the human species, unless we got to the levels of CO2 that caused the End-Permian mass extinction -- and that would require tapping into a lot of low grade fossil carbon that is currently
October 29, 2025 at 2:52 PM
For the record, I don't think it likely that global warming alone could cause extinction of the human species, unless we got to the levels of CO2 that caused the End-Permian mass extinction -- and that would require tapping into a lot of low grade fossil carbon that is currently