Howard Lee
@hlee.bsky.social
Geologist and Science Writer: If you want to see what climate change can do to the planet just look at Earth's past!
https://h-lee.com/
https://h-lee.com/
Reposted by Howard Lee
Deeply ashamed to live in a country where tweeting this isn’t instant career suicide
February 16, 2026 at 5:47 PM
Deeply ashamed to live in a country where tweeting this isn’t instant career suicide
Reposted by Howard Lee
Dismissing any approximations to Article 5 as mere "rhetorical expressions," Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys named financial support for Ukraine's military or future EU membership as more realistic guarantees.
February 16, 2026 at 5:50 PM
Dismissing any approximations to Article 5 as mere "rhetorical expressions," Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys named financial support for Ukraine's military or future EU membership as more realistic guarantees.
"...establishes the groundwork for future tree-ring research, including climate reconstructions, as well as the potential to develop annually resolved carbon-14 records in the lowlands of Central America"
Excited to share the first paper from Isabel González Méndez! Isabel uses multiple lines of evidence, including radiocarbon and wood anatomy, to show annual ring formation and a climate signal in two lowland tropical tree species in Central America agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/...
Annual Chronology and Climate Signals in Swietenia macrophylla and Cedrela odorata (Meliaceae) in the Maya Lowlands
Cedrela odorata L and Swietenia macrophylla King form annual rings in the northern Maya lowlands of Central America Crossdating and chronology development is possible for tropical lowland tree sp...
agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
February 16, 2026 at 4:58 PM
"...establishes the groundwork for future tree-ring research, including climate reconstructions, as well as the potential to develop annually resolved carbon-14 records in the lowlands of Central America"
Reposted by Howard Lee
Writing is thinking.
It's not some marginal boring task you can skip. It's the heart of it.
It's not some marginal boring task you can skip. It's the heart of it.
It’s easy to think writing is mainly the transcription of ideas you already have—that is, until you try to write something worthwhile, and you find what you thought were saying transform into something far more interesting in the process. This skips that last step, and that is *not* an improvement.
“We plan to hire an AI rewrite specialist to ingest the reporting by Hannah and others and use AI to convert it into stories.”
The editor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer said it will use AI to ‘write’ its articles.
www.cleveland.com/news/2025/10...
The editor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer said it will use AI to ‘write’ its articles.
www.cleveland.com/news/2025/10...
February 16, 2026 at 2:55 PM
Writing is thinking.
It's not some marginal boring task you can skip. It's the heart of it.
It's not some marginal boring task you can skip. It's the heart of it.
Reposted by Howard Lee
Cyprus appeals to residents to cut water use by two minutes a day amid drought #Climate
Cyprus appeals to residents to cut water use amid once-in-a-century drought
Island’s reservoirs hit record lows even before tourist season starts as Cypriots are warned ‘every drop counts’
www.theguardian.com
February 16, 2026 at 3:21 PM
Cyprus appeals to residents to cut water use by two minutes a day amid drought #Climate
Reposted by Howard Lee
This video of JD Vance is AI-generated. It's not real.
February 16, 2026 at 3:21 PM
This video of JD Vance is AI-generated. It's not real.
Reposted by Howard Lee
100% this.
I love to tell my students about ways people have "accidentally" discovered things that benefited humanity as a whole.
I love to tell my students about ways people have "accidentally" discovered things that benefited humanity as a whole.
The collapse of curiosity driven research has occurred in STEM too. Everything has to be outcomes focused - cure disease, grow better crops, etc. But so much of what humanity has discovered is from "basic" curiosity-driven science. I'm hugely in favor of funding curiosity in every discipline.
February 16, 2026 at 3:24 PM
100% this.
I love to tell my students about ways people have "accidentally" discovered things that benefited humanity as a whole.
I love to tell my students about ways people have "accidentally" discovered things that benefited humanity as a whole.
Reposted by Howard Lee
Mapping tipping risks from Antarctic ice basins under global warming
->Nature | More on "Antarctic ice sheet tipping points" at BigEarthData.ai | #climate change #global warming #antarctic
->Nature | More on "Antarctic ice sheet tipping points" at BigEarthData.ai | #climate change #global warming #antarctic
Mapping tipping risks from Antarctic ice basins under global warming
The model simulations used for the analysis have been carried out using a modified version of the Parallel Ice Sheet Model (PISM; www.pism.io), v1.0. PISM is an open-source, high-resolution, thermomechanically coupled and polythermal ice flow model77,78,96 which is widely adopted in the scientific community for simulating the evolution of ice sheets and glaciers to constrain projections of future sea-level rise. The model version adopted here is the same as in ref. 76. In simulations over the last two glacial cycles, this model configuration has been proven capable of adequately reproducing the dynamic evolution of Antarctica across its glacial–interglacial history, resulting in simulated present-day ice-sheet configurations reasonably close to observations97. PISM is a hybrid shallow ice flow model in which ice flow velocities resulting from two stress balance approximations—the shallow ice and shallow shelf approximations—are superimposed over the entire ice-sheet/ice-shelf domain78. This ensures smooth and consistent transitions between the different flow regimes in the interior of the ice sheet, where flow is dominated by vertical shearing, in the ice streams, which are sliding on the bed and in the floating ice shelves, where flow is characterized by fast plug flow. The simulations are performed using a regular rectangular grid with 16-km...
www.nature.com
February 16, 2026 at 12:09 PM
Reposted by Howard Lee
𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘅 𝗲𝗻𝘃𝗶𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀, 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹, 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀....
Krubera/Voronja Cave, in the Arabika Massif in Georgia, is the deepest known cave in the world.
The karst complex exceeds 2.000 metres in depth, with the deepest explored point reaching 2.199 metres (7.215 feet).
Krubera/Voronja Cave, in the Arabika Massif in Georgia, is the deepest known cave in the world.
The karst complex exceeds 2.000 metres in depth, with the deepest explored point reaching 2.199 metres (7.215 feet).
February 16, 2026 at 8:17 AM
𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘅 𝗲𝗻𝘃𝗶𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀, 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹, 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀....
Krubera/Voronja Cave, in the Arabika Massif in Georgia, is the deepest known cave in the world.
The karst complex exceeds 2.000 metres in depth, with the deepest explored point reaching 2.199 metres (7.215 feet).
Krubera/Voronja Cave, in the Arabika Massif in Georgia, is the deepest known cave in the world.
The karst complex exceeds 2.000 metres in depth, with the deepest explored point reaching 2.199 metres (7.215 feet).
Reposted by Howard Lee
Interferogram (#InSAR) shows deformation related to the new Piton de la Fournaise #volcano 🌋 eruption in La Réunion island). ⚒️
🌋 Eruption du 13/02/2026 au Piton de la Fournaise.
Interferogramme Sentinel-1 Ascending Stripmap couvrant la période entre le 08/02/2026 et le 14/02/2026.
🧐 Les franges représentent la zone déformée. Une frange = 2,8 cm de déplacement dans la direction du satellite.
(© OI2/ISDeform – OSUL).
Interferogramme Sentinel-1 Ascending Stripmap couvrant la période entre le 08/02/2026 et le 14/02/2026.
🧐 Les franges représentent la zone déformée. Une frange = 2,8 cm de déplacement dans la direction du satellite.
(© OI2/ISDeform – OSUL).
February 16, 2026 at 9:53 AM
Interferogram (#InSAR) shows deformation related to the new Piton de la Fournaise #volcano 🌋 eruption in La Réunion island). ⚒️
Reposted by Howard Lee
February 16, 2026 at 11:11 AM
Reposted by Howard Lee
February 16, 2026 at 11:26 AM
Reposted by Howard Lee
NEW: Antarctic ice sheet not one tipping element, but interacting basins with distinct thresholds. ~40% of West Antarctic ice may be committed to long-term loss; parts of East Antarctica face risks at 2–3°C. @ricarda-winkelmann.bsky.social @juliusgarbe.github.io
www.pik-potsdam.de/en/news/late...
www.pik-potsdam.de/en/news/late...
New study identifies sequence of critical thresholds for Antarctic ice basins
16.02.2026 - The Antarctic ice sheet does not behave as one single tipping element, but as a set of interacting basins with different critical thresholds. This is the finding of a new study by the Pot...
www.pik-potsdam.de
February 16, 2026 at 11:46 AM
NEW: Antarctic ice sheet not one tipping element, but interacting basins with distinct thresholds. ~40% of West Antarctic ice may be committed to long-term loss; parts of East Antarctica face risks at 2–3°C. @ricarda-winkelmann.bsky.social @juliusgarbe.github.io
www.pik-potsdam.de/en/news/late...
www.pik-potsdam.de/en/news/late...
⚒️
#ecsmonday
Stress deviations aren't just for major faults! Caldeira et al. (CH) show #sub-seismic fault zones (<10 km) cause #paleostress rotations up to 30° in the Swiss Jura Mountains
doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2026.105640
#paleostress #structuralgeology #paperalert
Stress deviations aren't just for major faults! Caldeira et al. (CH) show #sub-seismic fault zones (<10 km) cause #paleostress rotations up to 30° in the Swiss Jura Mountains
doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2026.105640
#paleostress #structuralgeology #paperalert
February 16, 2026 at 11:58 AM
⚒️
"I think it's reversible, but this is authoritarianism."
www.npr.org/2026/02/16/n...
www.npr.org/2026/02/16/n...
Concerns over autocracy in the U.S. continue to grow
Is America still a democracy? Scholars tell NPR that after the last year under President Trump, the country has slid closer to autocracy or may already be there.
www.npr.org
February 16, 2026 at 11:57 AM
"I think it's reversible, but this is authoritarianism."
www.npr.org/2026/02/16/n...
www.npr.org/2026/02/16/n...
Reposted by Howard Lee
Day 7 of my voyage to the #Antarctic Peninsula on the #tallship #BarkEuropa: an exploration of a narrow channel between Spert and Trinity islands in small boats, weaving between numerous icebergs and growlers.
#BusmansHoliday
#BusmansHoliday
February 15, 2026 at 11:08 PM
Day 7 of my voyage to the #Antarctic Peninsula on the #tallship #BarkEuropa: an exploration of a narrow channel between Spert and Trinity islands in small boats, weaving between numerous icebergs and growlers.
#BusmansHoliday
#BusmansHoliday
2 regimes doing similar stuff - front page Saturday NY Times. The Republican Iranification of America continues.
February 15, 2026 at 9:17 PM
2 regimes doing similar stuff - front page Saturday NY Times. The Republican Iranification of America continues.
Reposted by Howard Lee
medical miracle: this 75 year old man was born yesterday
Schumer on DHS reforms: "I believe Republicans will have no choice but to go along with us because it's so common sense"
February 15, 2026 at 2:51 PM
medical miracle: this 75 year old man was born yesterday
Reposted by Howard Lee
Let me just make a few little adjustments to that title…
“How a scientist with a PhD in Geology and 25 years of experience is helping lead California’s earthquake work”
Way to devalue my experience.
“How a scientist with a PhD in Geology and 25 years of experience is helping lead California’s earthquake work”
Way to devalue my experience.
Wendy Bohon has built a TikTok following as an earthquake geologist. She helps lead earthquake work for the California Geological Survey.
How a TikToker and former actress is helping lead California’s earthquake work
Wendy Bohon has built a TikTok following as an earthquake geologist. She helps lead earthquake work for the California Geological Survey.
bit.ly
February 15, 2026 at 3:08 PM
Let me just make a few little adjustments to that title…
“How a scientist with a PhD in Geology and 25 years of experience is helping lead California’s earthquake work”
Way to devalue my experience.
“How a scientist with a PhD in Geology and 25 years of experience is helping lead California’s earthquake work”
Way to devalue my experience.
Reposted by Howard Lee
Ask yourself: why would this administration want to delete references to Medgar Evers’ racist assassin being a racist? Why might that be?
I challenge anyone in this administration or Congress to defend this.
I challenge anyone in this administration or Congress to defend this.
Medgar Evers’ killer was a Klansman, but Trump administration says stop calling him a racist - Mississippi Today
Among anticipated changes to a new visitor brochure for the Medgar & Myrlie Evers Home National Monument is no longer using "racist" to describe the killer of the civil rights leader.
mississippitoday.org
February 15, 2026 at 3:14 PM
Ask yourself: why would this administration want to delete references to Medgar Evers’ racist assassin being a racist? Why might that be?
I challenge anyone in this administration or Congress to defend this.
I challenge anyone in this administration or Congress to defend this.
Reposted by Howard Lee
The first paragraph here only underscores the magnitude of the problem on the Supreme Court.
Any politician who does not recognize this problem and commit to addressing it is unfit to serve in this moment.
Any politician who does not recognize this problem and commit to addressing it is unfit to serve in this moment.
this is a really important point. the district courts are trying to contain this administration. the circuits, by and large, are still working, with the occasional exception of the 5th, 8th, and DC circuits.
the Supreme Court is on an island. lawless and completely rogue.
the Supreme Court is on an island. lawless and completely rogue.
Our court system is largely working, with the exception of the most important court
February 15, 2026 at 1:58 PM
The first paragraph here only underscores the magnitude of the problem on the Supreme Court.
Any politician who does not recognize this problem and commit to addressing it is unfit to serve in this moment.
Any politician who does not recognize this problem and commit to addressing it is unfit to serve in this moment.
Reposted by Howard Lee
You know I love your ham sandwiches.
February 14, 2026 at 11:35 AM
You know I love your ham sandwiches.
Reposted by Howard Lee
Thin boudinaged sandstone layer above thicker boudinaged sandstone layer in Catoctin Formation exposed at Rockfish Valley Overlook, Route 250, just below Rockfish Gap. Note the quartz veins in the boudin necks. ⚒️
February 15, 2026 at 1:45 PM
Thin boudinaged sandstone layer above thicker boudinaged sandstone layer in Catoctin Formation exposed at Rockfish Valley Overlook, Route 250, just below Rockfish Gap. Note the quartz veins in the boudin necks. ⚒️
Reposted by Howard Lee
President Trump called U.S. Olympic skier Hunter Hess a "loser" after Hess voiced concern about political turmoil in the U.S. Gold medal U.S. figure skater Amber Glenn says she's faced online hate and threats after advocating for LGBTQ rights.
As US Olympians call for tolerance and LGBTQ rights, some face Trump attacks and online hate
President Trump called U.S. Olympic skier Hunter Hess a "loser" after Hess voiced concern about political turmoil in the U.S. Gold medal U.S. figure skater Amber Glenn says she's faced online hate and threats after advocating for LGBTQ rights.
n.pr
February 15, 2026 at 1:34 PM
President Trump called U.S. Olympic skier Hunter Hess a "loser" after Hess voiced concern about political turmoil in the U.S. Gold medal U.S. figure skater Amber Glenn says she's faced online hate and threats after advocating for LGBTQ rights.