Latest news with #GISS
Fast Company
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Fast Company
This iconic NASA office changed climate science forever. DOGE plans to kill it
In recent months, the drama around Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), President Trump's efforts to defund federal agencies, and the court cases challenging these moves have consumed the news. It's understandable that an announcement last month about a small office lease on the Upper West Side of Manhattan being canceled didn't get much attention. But that 43,000-square-foot space near Columbia University is home to the Goddard Institute for Space Studies, or GISS, a NASA research outfit, think tank, and pioneer in climate change research that will see its lease terminated by the end of the month, per a NASA spokesperson. Currently, the institute has no permanent home to move into. It's likely you've seen the building, even if you're not aware of the monumental achievements that have taken place there. The exterior shot of the diner in Seinfeld features that exact building; for decades, scientists working inside have dealt with an occasional fan taking selfies outside. You're also probably more aware of the ideas hatched inside than you think. During the '60s, when the institute was founded, the terms black hole and quasar were coined inside its walls. In the late '80s, NASA scientist James Hansen became famous for his warnings about the dangers posed by climate change. He was then the head of GISS, and the climate modeling that he and his colleagues did there proved the case. 'This is the place we came finally to understand the threat to the Earth that global warming represented—the biggest threat in the history of our species,' climate advocate and author Bill McKibben told Fast Company. 'Nothing less than that. Their datasets were what allowed Hansen to go before Congress and speak with authority. He had the numbers and no one else did.' The end of GISS as we know it represents many things, including the damage the Trump administration's cost-cutting is doing to American scientific preeminence. Current head Gavin Schmidt said without funds for a new lease, he's racing to find a new home. (Though staffers haven't been told where they're moving to, as of yet, none have been terminated; a NASA spokesperson said, 'Over the next several months, employees will be placed on temporary remote work agreements while NASA seeks and evaluates options for a new space for the GISS team.') The move comes as the federal government has decried climate science, cut jobs at NASA, and proposed curtailing its mission. But even the existence of GISS showcases the power of a small group of curious, driven people who, if given resources and freedom, can accomplish incredible things. 'There is something that is quite distinct to working for NASA,' said Schmidt. 'Because, literally the whole universe is your subject.' A Small Office With Expansive Freedoms Located across a few floors in a former apartment building, GISS has never been a well-outfitted office. 'Until recently, it was a shithole,' said Schmidt, who noted that even though a long-overdue renovation was just finished, the air-conditioning system is still pretty much nonfunctional. But the office decor was never the attraction. It was the people you could bump into. Named after rocketry pioneer Robert Goddard, the institute was established in 1961, and initially called the Institute for Space Studies. It was led by Robert Jastrow, a celebrated researcher and public figure who would help millions of Americans learn about space via prolific writings and TV appearances. Locating in New York City helped attract the leading lights of academia from surrounding universities. Jastrow said the institute's goal was to 'arouse the interest and enlist the participation of this rich scientific community.' It became a hotbed for debate and ideas, hosting seminars and talks that are credited with birthing the concepts behind black holes, quasars, and plate tectonics. A sidewalk bookseller who specialized in sci-fi books positioned himself nearby to pick up business from the high concentration of astrophysicists. Jastrow could be a competitive and energetic boss—he would push researchers to pull all-nighters and even get them to run laps with him around Central Park —but academic freedom remained paramount. 'GISS, from the very beginning, was set up as a place with a light federal presence,' said Schmidt, who took the reins at the institute in 2014. 'There would be civil servants, but most of the people there would be postdocs early in their career. The idea was to have this kind of fervent, enthusiastic, free from programmatic responsibilities [space]. It wasn't an operational center. We had a lot of workshops.' In the '70s, Hansen and others helped work on projects that sent probes to other planets, including Venus and Jupiter. By the early '80s, NASA changed its focus to what was called mission Earth; the agency realized it knew more about the polar ice caps on Mars than it did the polar ice caps on Earth, and sought to rectify that. In analyzing Earth's climate, the previous GISS work on other-planetary atmospheres came in handy. Those frameworks could be applied to Earth's climate, and its change over time. In addition to that deep bench of multifaceted scientific talent, GISS also had the gear. At the time, it had one of the most powerful computers in operation. While it still used punch cards and spinning disks, it enabled researchers to create the most sophisticated models of climate change that had been done thus far. McKibben remembers spending time by this machine, as Hansen explained what was being computed. 'I would have been there in the late '80s, right before or after Hansen's testimony [before Congress],' he said. 'I went a bunch of times, and he showed me around the mainframes and interpreted for me what they were spitting out. It was classic big science of that era—spinning disks and all.' Why Its Climate Models Remain So Valuable Having that technology, steady support, and a revolving cast of experts made it a perfect place to perfect climate modeling. According to Schmidt, as the task of analyzing the climate became more and more complicated, there basically ceased to be university-based climate modeling to predict future temperature shifts a few decades ago. Everything globally is done at labs like GISS, and it offers a substantial benefit to research around the world. The institute's famous temperature series, which it has maintained since the 1980s and provides monthly surface temperature data back to 1880, is provided free. It's not even a line-item in the GISS budget; Schmidt says it comes out of general operating expenses. And GISS continues to be one of, if not the most, influential organizations in the field, Schmidt argues, because it's cutting edge without being rigid. It's a small, nimble group of roughly 130 researchers without a strict hierarchy, so new ideas and research can quickly be vetted, tested, and applied to the model to improve its accuracy. GISS continues to refine and improve its model. Earlier this year, NASA launched a long-delayed satellite project called PACE that will explore phytoplankton growth on the ocean surface, algal blooms and aerosols, and other factors impacting temperature shifts. The institute also remains at the forefront of using machine learning to create models that chart the possible course of climate change. What happens to this work when GISS leaves the only home it's ever known remains to be seen. 'Obviously, it is not our idea,' Schmidt said, adding that he doesn't think it'll save money or lead to increased efficiency. The lease termination notice does say the work will continue in a new home. 'Is this going to impact our mission? Yes, of course,' he said. Schmidt has made some progress in his search for a new location, but he's far from finished. He's essentially begging for desks in the neighborhood, looking to find a home at Columbia University, New York University, or the Natural History Museum. He doesn't have any budget, so he can't pay rent and he fears there's a limit to how generous people will be. 'If you want to bring in people who are going to have interesting ideas and who are going to pursue those ideas, they have to have freedom to do so,' he said. 'They can't be so drowned with proposal writing or doing operational stuff or having to do some bullshit thing for somebody else. If you want to keep the smart people and creative people, you have to give them autonomy.'
Time of India
07-05-2025
- Science
- Time of India
Trump cancels Nasa climate lab's lease with Columbia university, threatens Earth Science work
Picture source: Nasa The Nasa Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS), a leading global climate research centre based in New York City, was forced to vacate its long-time office after the Trump administration cancelled its lease with Columbia University . The closure took effect on 31 May, with staff working remotely while the agency looks for a new GISS lab, located above the diner on the Upper West Side of Manhattan that was featured in the TV show 'Seinfeld,' has been a hub for climate modelling and space science for decades. The lab's scientists have worked closely with Columbia researchers to study the Earth's changing atmosphere and predict future climate an internal email obtained by CNN, Nasa Goddard director Mackenzie Lystrup told employees that while the physical space is closing, the lab's mission will continue. 'GISS has a significant place in the history of space science, for decades leading groundbreaking work in understanding planetary atmospheres and systems, especially that of our own Earth. And while the lease is ending, the institute's mission continues. ''The work continues, the data, the products, the science will continue because science is done by people, not by buildings said Gavin Schmidt, director of GISS, in an interview with CNN.A Nasa insider described the decision to CNN as 'demoralising,' especially with fears of more cuts to Earth science closure comes amid a broader standoff between the Trump administration and major universities, including Columbia, over policies on antisemitism and diversity.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
NASA Deploys Security Guards at Tense Staff Event as Gutting Looms
Morale at NASA is bottoming out as the Trump administration threatens to cut budgets. Future cullings still loom on the horizon, with disgusted employees calling the agency's new management out for "targeted" and "cruel" layoffs last month. Earlier this month, acting administrator Janet Petro revealed that work at some regional offices could soon be consolidated, hinting at the possibility of thousands of livelihoods being uprooted. This week, the Trump administration canceled the lease at its top climate monitoring lab at Columbia University in New York City, the Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS), as the result of devastating cuts carried out by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency. The gloomy atmosphere made for a "tense" meeting during a Monday town hall at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, according to the well-sourced former insider Keith Cowing, who now blogs at NASA Watch, with security guards overseeing the proceedings in the back of the overflow room. In light of having lost their headquarters in NYC, GISS staffers will have to work from home through September, per Cowing's reporting. But termination of the lease could end up being far more expensive, at least in the short run, highlighting how Musk's DOGE is wasting boggling amounts of money in its pursuit to gut government agencies. The space agency is going through a major transitional period. Staffers and managers alike have been waiting for the new administrator to take up the reins and provide some much-needed clarity in the wake of the chaos and destruction the Trump administration and DOGE have left behind. Are you a NASA insider with information to share? Drop us a line at tips@ We can keep you anonymous. Billionaire fighter jet pilot-turned-SpaceX astronaut Jared Isaacman, who's widely expected to be confirmed as NASA's next administrator in the coming weeks, has remained noticeably tight-lipped about proposed cuts to the agency's budget. In carefully worded responses to questions by bipartisan members of the Senate Commerce Committee last week, Isaacman called Trump's purported goal of slashing the space agency's science budget nearly in half not an "optimal outcome." The president has made a big deal out of NASA's efforts to send astronauts to the Moon and eventually to Mars. Given Isaacman's personal experience flying to space with the help of SpaceX twice, space exploration will likely be a priority going forward. "A commitment to keeping on to the Moon mission is the key requirement that we have to have in this position," said ranking member of the Senate Commerce Committee Maria Cantwell (D-WA) in a statement following the group's decision to advance Isaacman's nomination today. "Given this explicit commitment, I support Mr. Isaacman's confirmation." Whether those priorities will come at the expense of climate science and other areas of research at NASA remains to be seen. More on NASA: Incoming NASA Administrator Throws Elon Musk's Mars Plans Under the Bus
Yahoo
27-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump administration cancels lease for NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies lab in New York City
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. It would appear that the latest wave of U.S. federal program cuts fueled by the Trump administration has affected NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) lab in New York City, a branch of the agency dedicated to studying climate change and other Earth sciences. On Friday (April 25), news outlets such as CNN and SpaceNews reported that GISS's lease on office space in a Columbia University building in Manhattan's Upper West Side is set to be canceled. According to SpaceNews, an April 24 email sent to Goddard employees and signed by Makenzie Lystrup, director of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland (the parent organization of GISS), stated that the lease will end on May 31. The news outlet says the lease, which costs the agency $3.03 million annually, was originally supposed to last through August 2031. However, GISS Director Gavin Schmidt assured CNN that "the work continues, the data, the products, the science will continue because science is done by people, not by buildings." As of now, NASA says employees will be placed on "temporary remote work agreements while NASA seeks and evaluates options for a new space for the GISS team." Lystrup reportedly says the termination is related to "ongoing reviews by the current administration of all government leases," SpaceNews said of the obtained email's contents, but it remains unclear whether the Department of Governmental Efficiency (DOGE) spearheaded the matter. It is worth considering what role DOGE had to play in the decision because the department, led by SpaceX billionaire founder Elon Musk, is behind several other changes happening at NASA. For instance, DOGE staffers have recently been given significant access to agency systems and documents without clear disclosure of their workflow— to the dismay of some politicians because of possible threats to national security and conflicts of interest (due to SpaceX's role as a frequent provider of launch services for NASA). News of GISS's lease cancellation also comes amid several other changes that DOGE, in conjunction with the Trump administration, has provoked, such as the cutting of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility programs as well as the sudden layoffs of thousands of federal workers in the name of saving what the department considers "wasted taxpayer money." Related Stories: — Trump administration could slash NASA science budget by 50%, reports suggest — 'Their loss diminishes us all': Scientists emphasize how Trump's mass NOAA layoffs endanger the world — Elon Musk's DOGE team given 'alarming degree' of access to NASA systems, House Democrats say Reports have also been circulating about budget "passback documents" that suggest the White House plans to cut NASA's science budget by about 50%, which could lead to huge consequences like the closing of Goddard Space Flight Center and the gutting of in-development missions like the highly anticipated Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. It is also of note that GISS's lease in particular was canceled. Not only does it deal with Earth science projects that fall under the umbrella of NASA science programs that are possibly in danger, but it is also focused on climate change research, which the Trump administration seems to be specifically targeting. Over 800 workers at the U.S. National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration (NOAA) were terminated abruptly in March, for instance, and the White House's general decision-making as of late appears to align with a policy blueprint laid out by a conservative think tank called The Heritage Foundation. The Heritage Foundation describes NOAA as being part of the "climate change alarm industry" and calls for it to be dismantled and its weather forecasting operations fully commercialized.
Mint
25-04-2025
- Business
- Mint
NASA ends lease for NYC Climate Center as part of Donald Trump administration Federal property review
NASA is ending its lease for the New York City-based climate science center that has operated out of a Columbia University-owned building since the 1960s. A NASA spokesperson confirmed via email that the decision is part of President Donald Trump's broader review of federal property leases. The facility, known as the Goddard Institute for Space Studies, is a key player in global climate research and manages one of the world's five major independent temperature datasets. The institute is required to vacate the premises by May 31, Bloomberg reported. 'NASA leadership told GISS staff that it will conduct its work virtually. Over the next several months, employees will be placed on temporary remote work agreements while NASA considers new spaces,' Bethany Stevens, an agency spokesperson, told Bloomberg. Several NASA officials visited New York on Thursday morning and met with about 100 staff members to discuss the move and address concerns that the change might have larger implications for the institute's work, according to Gavin Schmidt, director of GISS. Makenzie Lystrup, the center director for NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, promised the GISS mission would continue in an email sent to employees seen by Bloomberg. 'The work of the GISS team is considered critical for the Earth Science Division, particularly as the Division looks to the future of its modeling work and capabilities,' Lystrup wrote. The Goddard Institute for Space Studies, established in 1961, is located in Armstrong Hall—a building also known for housing Tom's Restaurant, famously featured in the 1990s sitcom Seinfeld. The work of the GISS team is considered critical for the Earth Science Division. According to Schmidt, the lease is managed by the General Services Administration and costs around $3 million annually. (With inputs from Bloomberg) Key Takeaways The end of the lease may impact ongoing climate research efforts. NASA plans to transition to virtual work while seeking new spaces. The Goddard Institute has been pivotal in climate data management since 1961.
