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. Paleontology

    How an ancient marine predator snuck up on its prey

    Serrations at the edges of a fossilized flipper of the ancient marine reptile Temnodontosaurus suggests it may have been able to swim silently.

  2. Oceans

    Deep-sea mining could start soon — before we understand its risks

    The U.S. push to mine international waters for metals defies global efforts to control and protect these fragile ecosystems.

  3. Earth

    Earth’s oldest rocks may be at least 4.16 billion years old

    If the new age of these Canadian rocks is solid, they would be the first and only ones known to have survived Earth’s earliest, tumultuous time.

  4. Paleontology

    Sloths once came in a dizzying array of sizes. Here’s why

    A new fossil and DNA analysis traces how dozens of sloth species responded to climate shifts and humans. Just two small tree-dwelling sloths remain today.

  5. Climate

    Penguin poop gives Antarctic cloud formation a boost

    Penguin poop provides ammonia for cloud formation in coastal Antarctica, potentially helping to mitigate the impacts of climate change in the region.

  6. Paleontology

    This exquisite Archaeopteryx fossil reveals how flight took off in birds

    Analyses unveiled never-before-seen feathers and bones from the first known bird, strengthening the case that Archaeopteryx could fly.

  7. Climate

    Losing a key U.S. climate report would hurt future disaster prep

    A scientist who worked on the National Climate Assessment explains how stopping work on it may make us more vulnerable to extreme weather disasters.

  8. Climate

    Wetland bacteria could make more methane in a warming world

    Warming temperatures can ramp up the activity of methane-producing bacteria in wetland soils, adding to methane emissions.

  9. Climate

    Earth’s landmasses lost trillions of tons of water this century

    Rising global temperatures are driving the sharp decline in terrestrial water storage. This trend isn’t likely to change, scientists say.

  10. Paleontology

    Could Spinosaurus swim? The fierce dinosaur ignites debate

    Researchers are still divided about whether Spinosaurus was a swimmer or a wader. What’s clear is that confirming the first swimming dinosaur would be a game-changer.

  11. Paleontology

    Scotland’s Isle of Skye was once a dinosaur promenade

    New dinosaur fossil tracks on the Isle of Skye reveal that the once-balmy environment was home to both fierce theropods and massive sauropods.

  12. Climate

    Solar geoengineering moves into the spotlight as climate concerns grow

    As global temperatures rise, scientists debate the pros and cons of solar geoengineering, a strategy to cool Earth by reflecting sunlight into space.