Get smart quickly on climate change. This award-winning MIT podcast breaks down the science, technologies, and policies behind climate change, how it’s impacting us, and what our society can do about it. Each quick episode gives you the what, why, and how on climate change — from real scientists — to help us all make informed decisions for our future.
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The frozen parts of our planet—from sprawling polar ice sheets and floating sea ice to mountain glaciers and frigid soils—face profound risks from climate change. Already, a warmer world has transformed these landscapes, with consequences that span the globe. Dr. Sarah Das, a Scientist Emeritus at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, joins to discuss her decades-long career studying the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets and help us understand how changes to the polar regions affect people now ...
From cars and ships to bridges and skyscrapers, steel forms the landscape of modern life. At the same time, steelmaking is one of the world’s biggest industrial sources of climate-warming carbon dioxide. Antoine Allanore, a professor of metallurgy at MIT, explains how CO2 became so entrenched in the chemistry of steelmaking—and the creative ways scientists and engineers are trying to get it out. We gratefully acknowledge Katie Daehn, postdoctoral associate, and Matthew Michalek, Ph.D. student an...
Solutions to climate change, like building clean energy, come with a price tag. But unchecked warming also brings serious costs. As we make investments to rein in our climate pollution, how should we weigh costs and benefits? Dr. Jennifer Morris of MIT joins the show to explain how economists have tried to pin down the dollar costs of a warming planet, and why a clear answer has proved elusive. Together, we’ll ask how the tools of economics can help us plan for a better, more prosperous future, ...
This episode re-airs a 2019 discussion on carbon pricing, explaining mechanisms like carbon taxes and cap-and-trade systems. It delves into their economic impacts, including potential consumer costs and revenue redistribution, along with historical successes in pollution reduction. A 2026 update highlights Canada's policy shifts, China's expanding carbon market, and the European Union's innovative Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), which encourages global carbon pricing adoption.
Professor David Hsu discusses the evolution of electricity from early microgrids to today's large centralized systems, and the emerging shift towards local power models. The episode highlights how technologies like solar panels and batteries enable communities to generate their own power, improving reliability in areas with unstable grids and allowing for greater local control over energy sources, including the adoption of greener options.
Climate change is putting pressure not only on humans, but also on our fellow species. How can plants, animals, and other living things survive as their habitats are transformed? In this episode, we explore one way: moving. Dr. Toni Lyn Morelli and Dr. Alexej Sirén help us understand how climate change is shaking up the map of where species live—and what that means for all of us who share this planet. For a deeper dive and additional resources related to this episode, visit: https://climate.m...
The past three years have been the three hottest humanity has ever measured. But who does the measuring, and how? Dr. Samantha Burgess, of the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service, joins the show to explain how we know the temperature of the Earth, and how a global community of scientists works together to keep tabs on the health of our planet. For show notes and more resources, visit https://climate.mit.edu/podcasts/e3-taking-earths-temperature Credits Aaron Krol, Writer and Execu...
Nuclear power offers huge amounts of round-the-clock energy free of climate-warming pollution. In the United States, it’s also become very expensive to build. As government support grows to bring more nuclear power to the U.S., Prof. Jacopo Buongiorno of MIT joins us to break down how nuclear got so costly and what we can learn from countries with more active nuclear industries. For a deeper dive and additional resources related to this episode, visit: https://climate.mit.edu/podcasts/e2-nuclear...
Dr. Julie Simpson of MIT discusses coastal saltwater wetlands, including salt marshes, mangrove forests, and seagrass meadows. These ecosystems are vital for drawing down and locking away significant amounts of planet-warming carbon dioxide, a unique "superpower" stemming from their waterlogged soils and specific chemistry. Beyond climate regulation, wetlands also purify water, protect coastal infrastructure from storms, and offer immense aesthetic and spiritual value. The episode also touches on threats to these habitats and ongoing research to protect and restore them.
The podcast, formerly TILclimate, relaunches as Ask MIT Climate, part of a broader initiative to consolidate climate change resources and reach more learners. Hosted by Madison Goldberg, the new season promises interviews with scientists and experts, alongside bonus content and outtakes on new social media channels. The show aims to provide accessible climate knowledge, with its new season starting next week.
Founding host Laur Hesse Fisher introduces Madison Goldberg as the new host of TILclimate, reflecting on the show's seven seasons of making complex climate science understandable and connecting listeners with scientific voices. They discuss the podcast's philosophy of distilling information, using metaphors, and focusing on systemic solutions rather than individual actions. Madison shares her vision for Season 8, including on-the-ground reporting, while Laur reveals her next steps in tackling climate action beyond political divides.
MIT's Joshua Hodge explains why power lines, often overlooked, are the critical link for harnessing clean, cheap, and reliable energy. The episode details how the current 20th-century grid struggles with growing demands, remote renewable sources, and local opposition to new construction. It highlights successful models like Texas CREZ and envisions a future North American grid, emphasizing the bipartisan benefits of a modern, interconnected transmission system.
Dr. Mary Rice, a pulmonologist, reveals the serious health effects of fossil fuel emissions, from historical evidence like the Great Smog of London to current understanding of how fine particulate matter harms the body. Despite regulations, air pollution still causes over 8 million deaths annually worldwide, disproportionately affecting vulnerable communities. The episode contrasts concerns about new energy technologies with the immense, existing costs of our fossil fuel dependence, emphasizing the immediate public health gains from transitioning to cleaner energy sources.
The world’s demand for batteries to power electric vehicles is growing at incredible speed. What will we do with all these batteries when they die? Dr. Linda Gaines of Argonne National Laboratory joins TILclimate to explain what batteries are made of, how we obtain those materials, and how we can get them back when the batteries reach the end of their lives—along with other options to make this industry less wasteful and more productive. For a deeper dive and additional resources related to this...
This episode of TILclimate explores geothermal energy, a clean, renewable, and always-on energy source derived from the Earth's internal heat. Professor Roland Horn discusses the technology behind geothermal energy, its current applications for electricity, heating, and cooling, and the potential of enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) to expand its use. The conversation highlights geothermal's reliability and growing economic competitiveness as a key factor in the clean energy transition.
Este episodio de TILclimate explora cómo los edificios modernos contribuyen significativamente a las emisiones de carbono y cómo podemos transformarlos en estructuras más sostenibles. Se discuten estrategias de diseño, materiales de construcción y tecnologías eficientes que pueden reducir el impacto ambiental de los edificios, al tiempo que se ahorra dinero a largo plazo. El episodio también destaca la importancia de modernizar los edificios existentes para alcanzar los objetivos climáticos.
This episode delves into climate change attribution, a new scientific field linking global warming to extreme weather events. Dr. Andrew Pershing explains how scientists use historical data and sophisticated climate models to quantify climate change's impact on events like heatwaves and droughts. This crucial information aids communities and policymakers in understanding future risks and developing effective adaptation strategies.
The Earth has gone through massive climate change before—many times over, in fact!—but human civilization has not. Prof. David McGee, a specialist in the study of ancient climates, joins the show to explain what came before the 10,000 years of global stability in which complex human societies emerged and grew. Along the way, we explore the scientific tools used to study the distant past, the great cycles of the ice ages, and what it can all tell us about the climate change we’re experiencing tod...
The way we grow and distribute food today is deeply dependent on fossil fuels, yet that dependence can feel invisible. Sustainable food systems researcher Prof. Jennifer Clapp joins the show to walk us through all the ways fossil fuels are used to produce one simple food item: a tortilla chip. Along the way, we’ll explore the hard work being done to eliminate climate pollution from the food we eat. For a deeper dive and additional resources related to this episode, visit: https://climate.mit.edu...
Este episodio de TILclimate explora el origen y la importancia de los objetivos de calentamiento global de 1.5 y 2 grados Celsius. La discusión abarca desde los orígenes de la meta de 2 grados en el trabajo del economista William Nordhaus hasta la influencia de la Alianza de Pequeños Estados Insulares (AOSIS) en la promoción del objetivo más ambicioso de 1.5 grados. Se destaca cómo estos objetivos, aunque no son legalmente vinculantes, impulsan la acción climática y el desarrollo de energías renovables a nivel global.
Este episodio explica el ciclo natural del carbono, cómo la Tierra absorbe el CO2 y cómo las actividades humanas, especialmente la quema de combustibles fósiles, han alterado este equilibrio. Se discute cómo la emisión de carbono por parte de los humanos, aunque parece pequeña en comparación con el ciclo natural, se acumula con el tiempo y tiene efectos a largo plazo en el clima.
This episode delves into the safety and mechanisms of storing millions of tons of carbon dioxide underground to mitigate climate change. Geologist Professor Brad Hager explains the specific geological conditions required to prevent leaks and induced earthquakes, drawing parallels with oil and gas extraction. The discussion covers how suitable sites are identified, real-world project successes and failures, and the crucial need for responsible oversight and regulation, ultimately concluding that the risks of CO2 storage are far outweighed by the dangers of continued atmospheric emissions.
This episode re-airs a discussion on carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) with experts from MIT. It covers the basics of carbon capture, including how it works, where the captured CO2 goes, and its potential role in addressing climate change. The episode also delves into the challenges and economic factors influencing the adoption of CCUS technologies.
Is hydrogen fuel a climate solution? That depends on how you produce it. Dr. Emre Gençer of the MIT Energy Initiative takes us on a tour of the hydrogen spectrum, from climate-polluting “gray” hydrogen made from natural gas to the much more promising “green” hydrogen made with renewable electricity. For a deeper dive and additional resources related to this episode, visit: For more episodes of TILclimate by the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative, visit tilclimate.mit.edu . Credits Laur Hesse...
This episode explores why battery electric vehicles (EVs) have surpassed hydrogen-powered cars in popularity, despite once being evenly matched. It details the technical differences between the two, highlighting cost advantages like falling battery prices and cheaper electricity for EVs. The discussion also covers the significant infrastructure challenges hydrogen cars face, such as production costs and lack of fueling stations, while acknowledging hydrogen's potential in heavy-duty transport.
This episode re-introduces hydrogen energy, explaining its fundamental properties and diverse applications across transportation, heating, and industrial processes as a versatile, carbon-free fuel when burned. It delves into how hydrogen can be generated, contrasting current methane-based production with cleaner renewable-powered electrolysis, and discusses its potential as an energy carrier. The episode also critically examines hydrogen's challenges, including cost, infrastructure needs, and safety concerns, highlighting that it's a significant part of the energy transition, but not a sole "silver bullet."
Wind power is the largest source of clean, renewable energy in the United States. But the large turbines that create that power can endanger wildlife. MIT Professor Michael Howland returns to the podcast to answer a listener's question about the risks of wind energy to birds—and explain how wind turbines compare to coal plants, power lines, office towers, housecats, and other threats to birdlife in the modern world. For a deeper dive and additional resources related to this episode, visit: For m...
Addressing concerns about wind power in cold climates, this episode explains how ice buildup can halt turbines, referencing the 2021 Texas cold front. It clarifies that failures were due to a lack of weatherization, not inherent unsuitability, and that other energy sources also failed. The discussion highlights how weatherizing technologies allow wind turbines to operate reliably in far colder regions like Antarctica, emphasizing the need for future energy infrastructure planning to account for increasing extreme weather events due to climate change, including current efforts in Texas to improve grid resilience.
The episode addresses whether higher CO2 levels, a climate pollutant, benefit plants. While initial experiments show a "CO2 fertilization effect" where plants grow faster, open-field studies reveal this is often limited by other factors like water and nutrient availability. The discussion further delves into historical CO2 levels, contrasting the slow pace of past changes with the rapid, detrimental impacts of modern climate change, such as droughts, floods, and pests, which ultimately complicate the long-term outlook for plant life.
The sixth season of Today I Learned: Climate is coming in two weeks, and this time we’re doing something a little different. People all around the world write into our team with questions about climate change. So this season, we’re working with scientists and experts at MIT and beyond, to answer those questions in language we can all understand.
