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Grand Challenge

Grand Challenge

Climate Science for Change

Grand Challenge

MIT scientists have pioneered efforts to understand the essential dynamics of global climate change and its effects across land, atmosphere, oceans, and ice sheets.

The climate crisis affects everyone. And in many parts of the world, those who are least equipped to handle their changing environment will be disproportionately impacted by it. Much can and must be achieved with existing technologies and policy approaches, including at MIT. In "Fast Forward: MIT's Climate Action Plan for the Decade," the Institute redoubles its bedrock commitment to expand humankind’s knowledge of the forces disrupting the climate.

With foundational scientific research and game-changing innovations, we can continue to address the grand challenge of climate change. Through MIT's Climate Grand Challenges, five flagship projects have been selected to help us fast forward to the future we want — and need — to see.

Highlights

Ocean vital signs

How much carbon can the ocean absorb and how much more it can take?

Ocean vital signs

Researchers propose launching a fleet of oceangoing drones that would continuously monitor the flux of carbon dioxide between the atmosphere and ocean, helping to inform next-generation visualizations and models of the global carbon cycle.

Read more at MIT News →

Predicting sea-level rise

Can we predict sea-level rise from the physics of ice sheets?

Predicting sea-level rise

A melting glacier

Brent Minchew, the Cecil and Ida Green Career Development Professor in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences (EAPS), wants to more fully understand the most fundamental processes that govern rapid changes in glacial ice, and to use that understanding to build next-generation models that are more predictive of ice sheet behavior as they respond to, and influence, climate change.

Read it at MIT News →

Quote from Matěj Peč geoscientist and the Victor P. Starr Career Development Assistant Professor in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

“If we want to be anywhere near those limits of 1.5 or 2C, then we have to be carbon neutral by 2050, and then carbon negative after that."

Matěj Peč

geoscientist and the Victor P. Starr Career Development Assistant Professor in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

The Team

  • John Aldridge

    Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Systems Group

  • Kristin D. Bergmann

    Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

  • Deborah J. Campbell

    Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Systems Group

  • Tim Cronin

    Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

  • Alan Edelman

    Mathematics

  • Kerry Emanuel

    Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

  • Raffaele Ferrari

    Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

  • Arlene Fiore

    Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

  • Glenn Flierl

    Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

  • Xiang Gao

    Center for Global Change Science

  • Mary Gehring

    Biology

  • John Marshall

    Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

  • David McGee

    Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

  • Paul O'Gorman

    Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

  • Sergey Paltsev

    Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change

  • Ronald Prinn

    Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change

  • Sai Ravela

    Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

  • Daniel Rothman

    Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

  • C. Adam Schlosser

    Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change

  • Noelle Selin

    Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

  • Anne Slinn

    Center for Global Change Science

  • Andre Souza

    Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

  • Yogesh Surendranath

    Chemistry

  • Tim Swager

    Chemistry

  • Gregory LeClaire Wagner

    Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

  • Jing-Ke Weng

    Biology

News

  • Looking to the past to prepare for an uncertain future

    January 11, 2023

  • MIT is creating a digital twin of the Earth to help model climate change

    June 6, 2022

  • MIT Climate and Sustainability Consortium announces recipients of inaugural MCSC Seed Awards

    May 23, 2022

  • MIT announces five flagship projects in first-ever Climate Grand Challenges competition

    April 11, 2022

  • Q&A: Climate Grand Challenges finalists on using data and science to forecast climate-related risk

    April 7, 2022

  • Q&A: Climate Grand Challenges finalists on new pathways to decarbonizing industry

    March 28, 2022

  • Q&A: Climate Grand Challenges finalists on accelerating reductions in global greenhouse gas emissions

    March 17, 2022

  • Q&A: Climate Grand Challenges finalists on building equity and fairness into climate solutions

    March 4, 2022

Please contact Elizabeth Chadis if you are considering a gift to the School of Science.

Give Now

Next Up

Editing Ourselves

With the CRISPR system, researchers can diagnose, detect, and potentially treat a host of diseases within the body using gene editing.

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