Tour Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory

Register for an Upcoming Tour

Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory currently offers limited in-person tours on a bi-monthly schedule. The next tours in 2026 are occurring in June, August, October, and December. 

Please note that hands-on activities are not included in tours at Lamont. For specialized experiences such as school trips and hands-on workshops we recommend considering the Lamont-Doherty Hudson River Field Station. Their offerings are tailored to various age groups and educational objectives ensuring a comprehensive and enriching experience. 

If you are interested in visiting the Lamont campus and the available tours are at capacity please consider visiting us at the annual Open House in October. On this day you will be able to join us for lab tours, participate in hands-on activities with our scientists, and learn from world-renowned researchers about their latest discoveries.

Please be aware that we are not an astronomical observatory and do not offer stargazing activities. 

To learn more about some of our featured labs, visit:

Deep Sea Core Repository
Seismic Sound Lab
Rock and Ice Mechanics Lab
Trace Isotope and Noble Gas Laboratory (TINGL Lab)
Tree Ring Lab

Note: Tour participants may include individuals, schools, and groups. No visitor under the age of fourteen is allowed in any University laboratory except for organized tours. Additional age restrictions may apply depending on specific labs visited. 

Questions? Contact us.

About Us

Established in 1949, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory is home to the greatest breadth of Earth science research and forms the core of Columbia University's world-leadership in climate change research and adaptation.

Located on 189 acres with sanctuary forests on New York's Hudson River, our campus is home to a dynamic community of 500 scientists, students, and staff, with nearly 300 PhD-level researchers, and 80-90 graduate students involved in research.

Lamont is known for many firsts:

• First to map the ocean floor and its mineral wealth
• First to predict El Nino events
• Built the first lunar seismometer deployed by Apollo astronauts
• Provided key evidence of plate tectonics
• Proved orbital theory of climate
• First demonstration air carbon capture and storage