Lamont News
PROFESSOR MARK A. CANE, a climate scientist at Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory and S. George Philander, an oceanographer at Princeton University, have been awarded the prestigious 2017 Vetlesen Prize for Achievement in Earth Sciences.
The two scientists, who first began working on climate in the 1970s, untangled the complex forces that drive El Niño, a powerful climate cycle over the tropical Pacific Ocean that has devastating impacts worldwide. As a result of their research, forecasting of El Niño events is now possible, and affected communities are better able to prepare for floods and droughts, making informed farming decisions and control harmful diseases.
The Vetlesen Prize, established in 1959, is administered by Lamont-Doherty. Cane and Philander will receive the 2017 award in April at Columbia University.