Ask MIT Climate

Climate scientist Mathew Barlow explains why warming can intensify both drought and extreme rainfall. The episode follows water through a warmer atmosphere, connecting increased moisture capacity and evaporation with dry soils and stronger downpours. It distinguishes changes in average conditions from the most damaging extremes and discusses why infrastructure faces growing flood risks.

Hosted by Madison Goldberg

Polar scientist Sarah Das describes fieldwork on the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, from expedition logistics and ice-core drilling to transporting frozen samples to the laboratory. The conversation explains how ice cores preserve climate records and how repeated visits reveal retreating glacier margins and earlier melt seasons. It connects the practical work of glaciology with measured changes in polar landscapes.

Hosted by Madison Goldberg

Sarah Das explains how polar ice sheets, sea ice and mountain glaciers respond to climate warming. Drawing on decades of research in Antarctica and Greenland, the episode examines ice-sheet mass balance, glacier flow, satellite measurements and the consequences of ice loss for sea level and communities. It connects observations of rapidly changing frozen landscapes with their global effects.

Hosted by Madison Goldberg