Study Reveals Stunning Acceleration of Sea Level Rise

The 20st century stands out for sudden rising sea levels, much more than any of the previous 27 centuries. “The new study, the culmination of a decade of work by three teams of farflung scientists, has charted what they called an ‘acceleration’ in sea level rise that’s triggering and worsening flooding in coastlines around the world,” reports John Upton for Climate Central. “The findings also warn of much worse to come.” Oceans and polar ice expand and shrink with world temperatures. The rise in sea levels varies around the world because of natural phenomenon like ocean cycles. Researchers are crediting climate change for more than half of the rising sea levels during the past century and three quarters of coastal flooding in the United States during the past decade. After long delays in responding to warnings from climate scientists, governments respond with barriers and other adaptive technologies. The research suggests that reducing deforestation and burning fossil fuels may save coastlines. Otherwise, sea levels may rise more than a meter by 2100 and more if polar ice sheets collapse. – YaleGlobal