Ask MIT Climate

In the first half of our two-parter on data centers and the U.S. energy system, we dug into the challenges that these huge, concentrated electricity users pose for communities and power grids. In this second installment, Prof. Costa Samaras of Carnegie Mellon University and Dr. Vijay Gadepally of MIT return to talk through some of the options on the table for responding to these challenges. And we explore how our choices fit into the bigger picture of tackling climate change, as data centers’ growing electricity needs meet those of electric vehicles, heat pumps and clean manufacturing.For a deeper dive and additional resources related to this episode, visit: https://climate.mit.edu/podcasts/e11-data-centers-and-race-power-ai-part-2.For more episodes of Ask MIT Climate, check out askmitclimate.org. Plus, find us on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for outtakes, bonus content, and more climate knowledge from MIT. As always, we love hearing from our listeners; email us at [email protected]. 

At the heart of the explosion in artificial intelligence, there are data centers. Companies are pouring money into these facilities to train and run AI models—and with this massive buildout comes a remarkable appetite for electricity. In the first installment of our two-parter on data centers and the U.S. energy system, Prof. Costa Samaras of Carnegie Mellon University and Dr. Vijay Gadepally of MIT walk us through some of the challenges posed by this surging electricity demand. And they discuss why our response to this moment matters for power grids and people right now, and for the long-term work of tackling climate change.For a deeper dive and additional resources related to this episode, visit: https://climate.mit.edu/podcasts/e10-data-centers-and-race-power-ai-part-1.For more episodes of Ask MIT Climate, check out askmitclimate.org. Plus, find us on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for outtakes, bonus content, and more climate knowledge from MIT. As always, we love hearing from our listeners; email us at [email protected]. 

How can climate change cause both more intense droughts and more severe floods? With help from Prof. Mathew Barlow, we dive into the water cycle on a warming planet, and learn how the basic physics of water moving through the atmosphere can explain a lot of the strange weather we need to prepare for as the world heats up. For a deeper dive and additional resources related to this episode, visit: https://climate.mit.edu/podcasts/e9-dry-spells-and-downpours For more episodes of Ask MIT Climate, check out askmitclimate.org. Plus, find us on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for outtakes, bonus content, and more climate knowledge from MIT. As always, we love hearing from our listeners; email us at [email protected].

In our previous episode, we spoke with Dr. Sarah Das, a Scientist Emeritus at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, about how climate change is affecting the big polar ice sheets of Antarctica and Greenland. She’s been traveling to the poles for her research since the nineties, and this week, she’s taking us behind the scenes: into the world of glacier science, “boomerang flights,” and ice as far as the eye can see. A video version of this episode is available on our YouTube channel. For a deeper dive and additional resources, visit: https://climate.mit.edu/podcasts/bonus-ice-sheets-polar-scientist. For more episodes of Ask MIT Climate, check out askmitclimate.org. Plus, find us on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for outtakes, bonus content, and more climate knowledge from MIT. As always, we love hearing from our listeners; email us at [email protected].

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 and in the future. We thank WHOI for providing audio recorded during supraglacial lake research in Greenland. (Credit: Chris Linder, ©Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution). For a deeper dive and additional resources related to this episode, visit: https://climate.mit.edu/podcasts/e8-polar-ice-warming-world. For more episodes of Ask MIT Climate, check out askmitclimate.org. Plus, find us on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for outtakes, bonus content, and more climate knowledge from MIT. As always, we love hearing from our listeners; email us at [email protected].

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 and research assistant, of the Allanore Group for additional assistance and participation in this episode.  For a deeper dive and additional resources related to this episode, visit: https://climate.mit.edu/podcasts/e7-hard-look-steel For more episodes of Ask MIT Climate, check out askmitclimate.org. Plus, find us on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for outtakes, bonus content, and more climate knowledge from MIT. As always, we love hearing from our listeners; email us at [email protected].

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, even in the face of uncertainty. For a deeper dive and additional resources related to this episode, visit: https://climate.mit.edu/podcasts/e6-economists-guide-climate-change For more episodes of Ask MIT Climate, check out askmitclimate.org. Plus, find us on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for outtakes, bonus content, and more climate knowledge from MIT. As always, we love hearing from our listeners; email us at [email protected].

What exactly is a carbon price, and how does it work? To prepare for a new episode about climate economics, we’re re-airing this season one episode in which MIT professor Christopher Knittel explains economists’ favorite tool for addressing climate change. Professor Knittel also returns for a special update on big developments in the world of carbon pricing, from Canada, China, and the European Union. For a deeper dive and additional resources related to this episode, visit: https://climate.mit.edu/podcasts/re-air-and-update-carbon-pricing For more episodes of Ask MIT Climate, check out askmitclimate.org. Plus, find us on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for outtakes, bonus content, and more climate knowledge from MIT. As always, we love hearing from our listeners; email us at [email protected].

Solar panels, batteries, microgrids, and other emerging energy technologies are making it easier than ever before for a community to produce some or all of its own power. Prof. David Hsu lays out the policies and technologies challenging the traditional, centralized model of the electric grid, including in places that lack reliable access to electricity. As the world strives to make energy cleaner, cheaper, and more accessible, what can local models offer that a big utility can’t—and the other way round? For a deeper dive and additional resources related to this episode, visit: https://climate.mit.edu/podcasts/e5-microgrid-future For more episodes of Ask MIT Climate, check out askmitclimate.org. Plus, find us on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for outtakes, bonus content, and more climate knowledge from MIT. As always, we love hearing from our listeners; email us at [email protected].

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.mit.edu/podcasts/e4-reshuffling-life-earth. For more episodes of Ask MIT Climate, check out askmitclimate.org. Plus, find us on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for outtakes, bonus content, and more climate knowledge from MIT. As always, we love hearing from our listeners; email us at [email protected].