Carolyn Gramling

Carolyn Gramling

Earth & Climate Writer

Carolyn Gramling is the Earth & Climate writer at Science News. Previously she worked at Science magazine for six years, both as a reporter covering paleontology and polar science and as the editor of the news in brief section. Before that she was a reporter and editor at EARTH magazine. She has bachelor’s degrees in Geology and European History and a Ph.D. in marine geochemistry from MIT and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. She’s also a former Science News intern.

All Stories by Carolyn Gramling

  1. Earth

    A magnetic field reversal 42,000 years ago may have contributed to mass extinctions

    The weakening of Earth's magnetic field beginning around 42,000 years ago correlates with a cascade of environmental crises, scientists say.

  2. Earth

    Fin whale songs can reveal hidden features of the ocean floor

    Fin whale calls can penetrate into Earth’s crust, offering scientists a new way to study the properties of the ocean floor.

  3. Earth

    Three things to know about the disastrous flood in India

    The flood, which killed at least 30 people, may have been caused by a collapsing glacier or a landslide, with climate change possibly playing a role.

  4. Earth

    Fossil mimics may be more common in ancient rocks than actual fossils

    Evidence of early life may be harder to preserve than pseudofossils — structures that form abiotically but resemble living remnants.

  5. Climate

    Ship exhaust studies overestimate cooling from pollution-altered clouds

    Lines of clouds formed by ship exhaust offer a window into aerosol-cloud interactions but may overestimate how much pollution-altered clouds cool the climate.

  6. Climate

    How much will Africa capitalize on cheap renewable energy as its power grid grows?

    An analysis of the successes and failures of past electrical power projects across Africa suggests the continent isn’t likely to go green before 2030.

  7. Climate

    ‘The New Climate War’ exposes tactics of climate change ‘inactivists’

    In his new book, climate scientist Michael Mann draws the battle lines for a new phase of the struggle against climate change denialism.

  8. Climate

    2020 and 2016 tie for the hottest years on record

    Ocean temperature data as well as temperatures measured over land at weather stations around the globe revealed the extent of the warming.

  9. Earth

    How the Earth-shaking theory of plate tectonics was born

    Plate tectonics explains many of Earth’s geologic wonders and natural hazards — and may hold clues to the evolution of life.

  10. Paleontology

    Newborn megalodon sharks were larger than most adult humans

    Preserved pieces of backbone suggest that megalodon sharks were about 2 meters long at birth.

  11. Earth

    Reawakened Yellowstone geyser isn’t a sign of imminent explosion

    The 2018 reactivation of Yellowstone’s Steamboat Geyser isn’t a portent of dangerous volcanic or hydrothermal eruptions, scientists say.

  12. Climate

    What the pandemic can teach us about ways to reduce air pollution

    Data collected during COVID-19 shutdowns may help tease out the complicated chemistry that brews poor air quality.