Benjamin Cook
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dustybowl.bsky.social
Benjamin Cook
@dustybowl.bsky.social

Climate scientist studying drought, land surface processes, climate extremes. https://www.drbenjamincook.net/

Benjamin I. Cook is an American climatologist with a number of publications to his name. Along with the Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory, for instance, he used paleorecords to reconstruct land cover in Mexico’s Yucatán and other Central American regions. .. more

Environmental science 57%
Geography 18%
Unraveling the mysteries of ancient solar storms and earthquakes using tree rings research.arizona.edu/news/unravel...
Unraveling the mysteries of ancient solar storms and earthquakes
Tree-ring and planetary scientists are preparing for the big natural events thanks to a Big Idea Challenge grant and a new laboratory.
research.arizona.edu
📢📢PhD position available!! 📢📢
"Improving future climate prediction through
modelling and data of Earth’s past"
At the University of Bristol, UK.
More details and how to apply:
shorturl.at/wKh2W
..or message me here directly.

AGU Journals Stop Asking Us to Do the Work of Checking Compliance With Your Open Science Policy Challenge

(difficulty impossible)

Reposted by Benjamin I. Cook

Dartmouth is hiring climate science postdocs through the prestigious Provost's Fellowship!

Info: apply.interfolio.com/178090

Applications are due February 15, 2026.

Come join our collaborative and supportive climate community! Reach out to me ([email protected]) with questions.
Apply - Interfolio {{$ctrl.$state.data.pageTitle}} - Apply - Interfolio
apply.interfolio.com

Reposted by Benjamin I. Cook

Led by Pete van Hengstum (Texas A&M), we have a new article out focusing on water balance ☔️ in the #Caribbean region over the past two millennia (+ implications for future changes under #climatechange), using a coastal Blue Hole in the Bahamas as a natural archive!

www.nature.com/articles/s43...
Common Era time-transgressive forcing of Caribbean water balance - Communications Earth & Environment
The balance between precipitation and evaporation in the Caribbean region during the Common Era can be estimated through analyses of sedimentary foraminiferal assemblages that record submarine groundw...
www.nature.com

Safe travels Dan! And yes, great chat, and appreciate the additional resources you shared.

And, FWIW, I agree with all 4 of your points.

I appreciate the response!

Okay, so do you think SAI is a good idea?

I would argue that part of the larger uncertainties/lower confidence is the lack of observational constraints for SAI. Do you disagree?

What is the evidence the models converge on the hydro response? GLENS seems to suggest they absolutely do not.

par.nsf.gov/servlets/pur...
par.nsf.gov

1000% agreed. The idea that we have any reasonable confidence in (among other things) the hydrologic cycle response to stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI) is deeply unserious.

Fortunately, last time I expressed my concerns, I was assured that nobody is actually advocating SAI! (lolsob)
My issue with SRM, leaving aside the equity and governance issues (which are IMO insurmountable), is that most (all?) of the research on SRM is based in models which struggle to agree on how even relatively recent volcanic events (our only albeit quite imperfect analog) affect surface climate. 1/2

How much do you think ocean forcing has contributed? La Nina didn't really kick off til recently.

(love that review article by the way!)
Tehran is having an historic drought due to a combination of factors, including climate change.

The ocean is not helping.

1/3

Tired: Making your students cry

Wired: Your students making YOU cry

Reposted by Benjamin I. Cook

Free tonight? Pop on down to Greenlight bookstore in Brooklyn!

greenlightbookstore.com/event/2025-1...
The Scientific American 2025 Nonfiction Panel
Brooklyn independent bookstore
greenlightbookstore.com
I’m sorry to be self promoting but I a) have never been seduced by a fascist with a brain worm b) am capable of crafting a decent sentence and c) wrote a book that did not earn me a fawning profile in the newspaper but is still pretty good
bookshop.org/p/books/huma...
Human Nature: Nine Ways to Feel About Our Changing Planet
Nine Ways to Feel About Our Changing Planet
bookshop.org
Exciting news! Student applications for paleoCAMP 2026 are open! Are you a graduate student working on any aspect of past climates or environments? Apply to be part of our 2-week summer school in the eastern Sierra Nevada! More details here: paleoclimate.camp/apply
Application — paleoCAMP
paleoclimate.camp
Looking for a #PhD in #ClimateExtremes?
We are advertising a project attributing causes of recent #droughts using counter-factual storylines.
Based in #Edinburgh, working with Andrew Schurer, me, @gabihegerl.bsky.social, & @edhawkins.org
tinyurl.com/5n7b52fr

Reposted by Benjamin I. Cook

In our new study @natwater.nature.com led by Yi Yao @ethz.ch, we show that irrigation expansion in many regions substantially decreases the net water influx from the atmosphere to land, further aggravating the existing drying trends caused by climate change www.nature.com/articles/s44...
Irrigation-induced land water depletion aggravated by climate change - Nature Water
The rapid expansion of agricultural irrigation raises concerns about exacerbating water scarcity, but land–atmosphere interactions are often overlooked. This study isolates irrigation impacts from oth...
www.nature.com
Just published this new paper, with a bunch of fantastic colleagues, with many suggestions for "Improving the representation of plant water stress and water use in Earth System Models." Access is free online. We have some great figures, thanks to Victor Leshyk. 🧪🌐🌳🌎

Reposted by Benjamin I. Cook

A new Atmospheric-Rivers Historical Data Record, from @CW3EScripps, is now being hosted by NOAA's NCEI, w/data for analyses like discerning the difference betwn West Coast IVTs strong enough to "look" like ARs that are ARs vs those due to other conditions.

journals.ametsoc.org/view/journal...
🚨The Moore Lab at UC Davis is hiring!🚨
Post-doc for a project with @adamsobel.bsky.social on the valuation of climate information for adaptation
Could be a good fit for an environmental economist or a climate scientist - flexible start date and location
Apply by Dec 1st: recruit.ucdavis.edu/JPF07346
Postdoctoral Scholar - Environmental Science & Policy
University of California, Davis is hiring. Apply now!
recruit.ucdavis.edu
Future changes in irrigation will reduce dry-heat stress (without reversing GHG trend) and will substantially amplify moist-heat stress (strengthening GHG trend).

New study @natcomms.nature.com led by Yi Yao @hydr-vub.bsky.social and @usyseth.bsky.social

www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Compounding future escalation of emissions- and irrigation-induced increases in humid-heat stress - Nature Communications
This study shows that future exposures to moist-heat increase more rapidly than those to dry-heat, and irrigation can further amplify moist-heat-related health risks. Improving irrigation efficiency a...
www.nature.com
Climate change DEFINITELY affects hurricane:

STRENGTH: Warmer water is hurricane food

RAINFALL: Warm air holds more water vapor

SURGE: Warmer water expands, warmer ice melts, sea levels rise

PREDICTION: hotter seas mean faster intensification

Reposted by Benjamin I. Cook

My issue with SRM, leaving aside the equity and governance issues (which are IMO insurmountable), is that most (all?) of the research on SRM is based in models which struggle to agree on how even relatively recent volcanic events (our only albeit quite imperfect analog) affect surface climate. 1/2

don't tell everyone my nom de plume

Also Ballerina: What if there was another cool assassin AND John Wick showed up

Reposted by Benjamin I. Cook

You'd think the Colorado River Basin dispute amounts to conflict between the upper and lower basin states based on most coverage, but Tribes and Mexico also have a big role here. We talked with Cora Tso and Sam Sandoval about these issues on Water Talk
www.watertalkpodcast.com/episodes/epi...
Episode 74: Tribal and Transboundary Issues in the Colorado River Basin — Water Talk
A conversation with Cora Tso (Senior Research Fellow, Tribal Water Policy, Kyl Center for Water Policy, Arizona State University) and Prof. Sam Sandoval (University of California Agriculture and Natur...
www.watertalkpodcast.com
I am currently seeking a Lab Manager for our Organic Geochemistry Lab at the University of Arizona! Full time position with benefits. If you have a chemistry/biology/geology degree and like fixing things and working with students, this position could be for you! arizona.csod.com/ux/ats/caree...
Laboratory Coordinator I - Geosciences
Maintenance and repair of the Organic Geochemistry Laboratory equipment, including but not limited to gas chromatographs, liquid chromatographs & ...
arizona.csod.com