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)
It's time for Susan Collins to go. What in the world was she thinking? How could she not know how important NCAR is? The people of Maine deserve better. People have shown way to much patience with her waffling. There is now the chance to replace her with a real defender of sane values.
January 16, 2026 at 2:04 AM
It's time for Susan Collins to go. What in the world was she thinking? How could she not know how important NCAR is? The people of Maine deserve better. People have shown way to much patience with her waffling. There is now the chance to replace her with a real defender of sane values.
Note that only about half of Americans have passports. For the other half, carrying around a birth certificate won't do much good, because it's not a photo ID. But really, Americans are under no legal obligation to carry "papers."
January 16, 2026 at 1:58 AM
Note that only about half of Americans have passports. For the other half, carrying around a birth certificate won't do much good, because it's not a photo ID. But really, Americans are under no legal obligation to carry "papers."
our dumping of CO2 into the atmosphere will have.
January 14, 2026 at 5:56 AM
our dumping of CO2 into the atmosphere will have.
Yes -- I think there is a case to be made that what we are doing to climate now is unprecedented in 4 billion years of Earth history, with the exception of maybe things like the bolide impact that put paid to the dinosaurs -- and even that did not have as long-lived an imprint on climate as
January 14, 2026 at 5:56 AM
Yes -- I think there is a case to be made that what we are doing to climate now is unprecedented in 4 billion years of Earth history, with the exception of maybe things like the bolide impact that put paid to the dinosaurs -- and even that did not have as long-lived an imprint on climate as
... intended as an inducement for the excommunicated party to reflect on his sins and seek grace and return. Vance is sorely in need of this.
January 14, 2026 at 5:53 AM
... intended as an inducement for the excommunicated party to reflect on his sins and seek grace and return. Vance is sorely in need of this.
The criteria for excommunication are surprisingly narrow, but I think a case could be made on the basis of apostasy. There is no way that Vance's beliefs can be considered consistent with Catholic doctrine. Note that excommunication is not actually an expulsion from the Church, but rather ...
January 14, 2026 at 5:53 AM
The criteria for excommunication are surprisingly narrow, but I think a case could be made on the basis of apostasy. There is no way that Vance's beliefs can be considered consistent with Catholic doctrine. Note that excommunication is not actually an expulsion from the Church, but rather ...
Except the PETM played out over probably thousands of years. We are doing something as big ( possibly bigger) over only a century or two.
January 14, 2026 at 5:50 AM
Except the PETM played out over probably thousands of years. We are doing something as big ( possibly bigger) over only a century or two.
One way to reclaim Christianity is for the Pope to excommunicate JD Vance from the Catholic Church.
January 14, 2026 at 3:51 AM
One way to reclaim Christianity is for the Pope to excommunicate JD Vance from the Catholic Church.
makes Marcy seem like an amateur. Nurse holds to this opinion despite it being clearly in conflict with the statutory code of conduct of the Royal Society. It's sheer cowardice. I'll say it again: Shame rains down on the shoulders of the Royal Society leadership -- that's Nurse and Council.
January 14, 2026 at 3:49 AM
makes Marcy seem like an amateur. Nurse holds to this opinion despite it being clearly in conflict with the statutory code of conduct of the Royal Society. It's sheer cowardice. I'll say it again: Shame rains down on the shoulders of the Royal Society leadership -- that's Nurse and Council.
And yet Paul Nurse, head of the Royal Society, says Musk can't be ejected from Fellowship unless he has engaged in scientific fraud. In contrast, the US National Academy of Sciences ejected Geoff Marcy because of his sexual predation. Musk has engaged in sexual predation, via Grok, on a scale ...
January 14, 2026 at 3:49 AM
And yet Paul Nurse, head of the Royal Society, says Musk can't be ejected from Fellowship unless he has engaged in scientific fraud. In contrast, the US National Academy of Sciences ejected Geoff Marcy because of his sexual predation. Musk has engaged in sexual predation, via Grok, on a scale ...
what it takes to actually understand a physical system. AI/ML has contributed very little, if anything, to real understanding of how the Universe works.
January 14, 2026 at 3:43 AM
what it takes to actually understand a physical system. AI/ML has contributed very little, if anything, to real understanding of how the Universe works.
Even universities are drinking the AI cool-aid. At Oxford the "Intelligent Earth" AI graduate training program gets 100! (Count them 100!) graduate studentships. For all of our planetary science work both in astro and AOPP we get maybe 5 studentships a year. There is almost no attention to
January 14, 2026 at 3:43 AM
Even universities are drinking the AI cool-aid. At Oxford the "Intelligent Earth" AI graduate training program gets 100! (Count them 100!) graduate studentships. For all of our planetary science work both in astro and AOPP we get maybe 5 studentships a year. There is almost no attention to
When I was in Hawaii some years back I had some of the rare local bananas, and it was a revelation compared to the cloned pale simulant of bananas we all get. But the tragedy is that, as I understand it, it really not so easy to get local bananas even in Hawaii. Is that true? I've only been once.
January 14, 2026 at 3:27 AM
When I was in Hawaii some years back I had some of the rare local bananas, and it was a revelation compared to the cloned pale simulant of bananas we all get. But the tragedy is that, as I understand it, it really not so easy to get local bananas even in Hawaii. Is that true? I've only been once.
I remember when TV stations used to sign off around midnight, often with a few inspirational words or some calming music. Channel 13 (PBS) in NY used to sign off with Satie, Trois Gymnopedies . Maybe it would be nice if bsky did that (using the IP address to determine when to sign off. )
January 10, 2026 at 4:13 AM
I remember when TV stations used to sign off around midnight, often with a few inspirational words or some calming music. Channel 13 (PBS) in NY used to sign off with Satie, Trois Gymnopedies . Maybe it would be nice if bsky did that (using the IP address to determine when to sign off. )
will not go away no matter how much "experimentation" is done. The authors should be asking themselves if governance of this technology is even possible, in the sordid geopolitical landscape we are living in and will be living in for the foreseeable future.
January 9, 2026 at 11:53 PM
will not go away no matter how much "experimentation" is done. The authors should be asking themselves if governance of this technology is even possible, in the sordid geopolitical landscape we are living in and will be living in for the foreseeable future.
The authors of articles like this are either naive or self-serving. None of the experimentation can address any of the real issues of what happens if there is a deployment, and some problems -- termination shock, and need to maintain solar geoengineering essentially forever --
January 9, 2026 at 11:53 PM
The authors of articles like this are either naive or self-serving. None of the experimentation can address any of the real issues of what happens if there is a deployment, and some problems -- termination shock, and need to maintain solar geoengineering essentially forever --
There is no "safe experimentation," because almost all "experimentation" develops the technology needed to deploy solar geoengineering. If the tech is developed, it will be deployed by greedy rogue actors like A.I. barons or profit-making startups, whether it is safe to do so or not.
January 9, 2026 at 11:53 PM
There is no "safe experimentation," because almost all "experimentation" develops the technology needed to deploy solar geoengineering. If the tech is developed, it will be deployed by greedy rogue actors like A.I. barons or profit-making startups, whether it is safe to do so or not.
Reposted by ClimateBook
And finally, the awarding of this year's lectureships!
Professor Suzanne Aigrain, of @oxfordphysics.bsky.social, is awarded the George Darwin Lectureship. 🥳
⤵️
Professor Suzanne Aigrain, of @oxfordphysics.bsky.social, is awarded the George Darwin Lectureship. 🥳
⤵️
January 9, 2026 at 4:04 PM
And finally, the awarding of this year's lectureships!
Professor Suzanne Aigrain, of @oxfordphysics.bsky.social, is awarded the George Darwin Lectureship. 🥳
⤵️
Professor Suzanne Aigrain, of @oxfordphysics.bsky.social, is awarded the George Darwin Lectureship. 🥳
⤵️
so Fellows, with maybe a similar amount participating online. That's out of about 1700 living fellows.
January 9, 2026 at 10:42 PM
so Fellows, with maybe a similar amount participating online. That's out of about 1700 living fellows.
The inaction is further facilitated by the fact that most Royal Society members are content to have their gongs and not get involved with any of the Society's goings-on. I have been at a lot of Society meetings where important things are discussed, and they rarely draw more than 100 or
January 9, 2026 at 10:42 PM
The inaction is further facilitated by the fact that most Royal Society members are content to have their gongs and not get involved with any of the Society's goings-on. I have been at a lot of Society meetings where important things are discussed, and they rarely draw more than 100 or
The Royal Society is not a democracy. Important decisions are made by the President and Council. No matter how much the membership at large would like to be quit of Musk, efforts will be blocked by the timid leadership with the excuse that they "don't want to get involved with politics."
January 9, 2026 at 10:42 PM
The Royal Society is not a democracy. Important decisions are made by the President and Council. No matter how much the membership at large would like to be quit of Musk, efforts will be blocked by the timid leadership with the excuse that they "don't want to get involved with politics."
Vance should be excommunicated.
January 9, 2026 at 10:24 PM
Vance should be excommunicated.