The field of climate science seems to contain many examples of alarming runaway feedback loops, vicious cycles, and previously unimagined detrimental synergistic effects arising within Earth systems—for example, the albedo effect with regard to melting sea ice; or melting permafrost releasing more methane to further accelerate the melting process. New research by a team from Columbia University continues in this vein with results from their recent study published in Science Advances. The study, “Projected increases in intensity, frequency, and terrestrial carbon costs of compound drought and aridity events,” shows that the compound effects of soil moisture (SM) and vapor pressure deficit (VPD) on terrestrial carbon uptake is greater than the effect of either variable when considered separately, and that these two conditions tend to mutually reinforce each other.