Jessica Tierney
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leafwax.bsky.social
Jessica Tierney
@leafwax.bsky.social
Climate scientist living in the Sonoran Desert. Analyzer of leaf waxes to learn about past climate change. Professor at the University of Arizona. I also like birds, nature, pets🦉🌿🐕 | Opinions are mine, not those of my employer
I do love Reddit for so many reasons. Thanks for accepting me bros!
September 8, 2025 at 3:16 AM
Here's some lovely artwork from the no desert data center (www.instagram.com/no_desert_da...) coalition that captures our feelings ⛈️

It would be great if a national news outlet picked up this story - its a type case for something that is increasingly an issue in the West. /fin
July 24, 2025 at 6:20 PM
I would like to unsubscribe from this mailing list
May 2, 2025 at 7:15 PM
Hard to post about ‘normal’ things, but - we had an amazing field trip out to CA with ugrads to learn and practice oceanography this Spring ❤️🌊 when things are dark I get a boost from teaching great students!
April 10, 2025 at 3:13 PM
Saturday is for enjoying Springtime in the desert. Even in years with little winter rain (like this one-less than 1 inch so far 😳) ocotillos will always bloom providing hummingbirds with nectar. A strong and spiky and beautiful plant 💪 #sonorandesert
March 8, 2025 at 11:35 PM
Quietly, my university took down its webpage on diversity (diversity.arizona.edu) and edited its land acknowledgement to remove the clause, "Committed to diversity and inclusion, the University strives..." We need Universities to stand up for their values, not comply in advance 😡
February 20, 2025 at 4:28 PM
For SuperbOwl day I’ll share this photo of a fulvous owl I took in Guatemala. Very handsome 🦉
February 10, 2025 at 12:56 AM
Rest in Peace Professor Andy Cohen @uarizona.bsky.social. I first met Andy as a PhD student working on Lake Tanganyika. He loved lakes and lake drilling projects, and was an incredible educator. His signature look was colorful collared shirts that he used to buy in Africa. We will miss him a lot 💔
February 6, 2025 at 5:31 PM
Also I forgot something kind of important! There is an idea that there was Pacific Deep Water formation during the Pliocene, but our reconstruction of SST and ocean salinity does not support this. It actually indicates a fresher North Pacific, which would not allow PDW.
January 30, 2025 at 11:51 PM
For the tropical Pacific folks out there, you should know that, for sure, the Pacific west-east SST gradient is reduced during the Pliocene ("El Niño-like"). The reduction is about 1˚C in the mid-Pliocene in agreement with my 2019 paper but likely larger during the early Pliocene.
January 30, 2025 at 11:45 PM
Our new mid-Pliocene GMST update of 4.1˚C moves up the estimates of Pliocene-based climate sensitivity. But we didn't account for any pattern effects, which might be at play here (stay tuned!).
January 30, 2025 at 11:45 PM
We combined model simulations and paleoclimate data to obtain a new estimate of global Pliocene warmth - 4.1˚C above preindustrial. That's a little bit higher than the last IPCC estimate of 3˚C, which was mostly based on models. We also provide a T estimate for the early Pliocene (4.75 Ma) of 4.8˚C.
January 30, 2025 at 11:45 PM
What our 2024 Science paper DOES show is a remarkable relationship between Earth's temperature and CO2 across even geological timescales, which underscores the importance of this greenhouse gas for driving climate change.
January 27, 2025 at 3:50 PM
The problem is the current RATE of warming which is just so, so fast. Humans and Earth's biota cannot adjust well to such fast warming. In fact, looking at geology, rapid warmings tend to be associated with mass extinctions. You know, like the Permian/Triassic - described in this slide
January 27, 2025 at 3:50 PM
For my first scientific post here, I want to talk about the Phanerozoic temperature record we published last Fall, which unfortunately has been making rounds in the climate denier circuit 👀 First though hopefully you can appreciate the beauty of this reconstruction ✨...
January 27, 2025 at 3:50 PM