Higher sea levels increase the risk of big storms — such as Hurricane Sandy — that cause flooding.
«Sea level is rising and
higher sea level increases the damages from coastal storms,» said Richard B. Alley, Evan Pugh Professor of Geosciences, Penn State.
«Sea level is rising and
higher sea level increases the damages from coastal storms,» said Richard B. Alley, Professor of Geosciences, Penn State.
Not exact matches
After reporting on Hurricane Sandy, he broke the story of how the city planned a multibillion dollar effort to
increase its resistance to climate change, and reported from the Netherlands on how the Dutch prepare for
higher sea levels.
Not all flooded during the 2012 storm, but climate change in the form of rising
sea levels is
increasing the risk of future damage, and
higher flood insurance bills.
The findings were not a total surprise, with future projections showing that even with moderate climate warming, air temperatures over the
higher altitudes
increase even more than at
sea level, and that, on average, fewer winter storm systems will impact the state.
«Within the next 15 years,
higher sea levels combined with storm surge will likely
increase the average annual cost of coastal storms along the Eastern Seaboard and the Gulf of Mexico by $ 2 billion to $ 3.5 billion,» the report says.
For the first time, the scientists show that the damage costs consistently
increase at a
higher rate than the
sea -
level rise itself.
The first predications of coastal
sea level with warming of two degrees by 2040 show an average rate of
increase three times
higher than the 20th century rate of
sea level rise.
For example, the Northeast is already experiencing
increases in severe rains and
higher - than - average
sea -
level rise.
A 12 percent
increase in the rate of aquifer recharge from added precipitation, combined with a projected 3 - foot rise in
sea level by the end of the century, would raise groundwater
levels in some parts of the city by an additional foot — up to 4 feet
higher than current
levels.
With less than 14 inches of
sea -
level rise, most of the 90 U.S. coastal cities studied outside of Alaska would see a 25-fold
increase in disruptive and damaging flooding by around 2080, 2060, 2040 or 2030 under the low, intermediate - low, intermediate and intermediate -
high scenarios, respectively.
Bangladeshis have watched
high tides rise 10 times faster than the global average, and
sea levels there could
increase as much as 13 feet by 2100.
Sea levels could rise by 2.3 meters for each degree Celsius that global temperatures
increase and they will remain
high for centuries to come, according to a new study by the leading climate research institute, released on Monday.
The region also experienced the
highest rates of
sea -
level rise over the world, indicating large
increases in ocean heat content and leading to substantial impacts on small island states in the region.
Higher sea levels will
increase the extent and frequency of flooding from such storms.
The team combined a computer model with 100 years of observations to tease out the fact that global
sea -
level rise is
increasing the tidal range, or the distance between the
high and low tides, in many areas throughout each bay.
With
higher levels of carbon dioxide and
higher average temperatures, the oceans» surface waters warm and
sea ice disappears, and the marine world will see
increased stratification, intense nutrient trapping in the deep Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean) and nutrition starvation in the other oceans.
But an upshot is that the land around Earth's equator, farthest from both ice sheets, is poised to receive the land - ice —
sea -
level double - punch:
Increasing ocean volume and weakening
high latitude gravity.
During the last deglaciation, and likely also the three previous ones, the onset of warming at both
high southern and northern latitudes preceded by several thousand years the first signals of significant
sea level increase resulting from the melting of the northern ice sheets linked with the rapid warming at
high northern latitudes (Petit et al., 1999; Shackleton, 2000; Pépin et al., 2001).
The likely
increase in
sea level by 2100 now stands at 3 feet, with worst - case scenarios going as
high as 6 feet.
But since climate scientists already expect a wide range of negative consequences from rising temperatures, including
higher sea level, more weather extremes and
increasing risks to human health, anything that accelerates warming is a concern.
Thus, for every 1 %
increase in local
sea level, there is a ~ 5 %
increase in ice flux through the grounding line (though this may be
higher if the bed is slippery near the grounding line, see Tsai et al. 2015).
Global ice - sheets are melting at an
increased rate; Arctic
sea - ice is disappearing much faster than recently projected, and future
sea -
level rise is now expected to be much
higher than previously forecast, according to a new global scientific synthesis prepared by some of the world's top climate scientists.
The average flood height
increased by about 4 feet in New York between the two time periods and with continued warming, larger and more extreme storms along with even
higher sea level is likely to cause more frequent and intense flooding.
The report found that global ice sheets are melting at an
increased rate; Arctic
sea ice is thinning and melting much faster than recently projected, and future
sea -
level rise is now expected to be much
higher than previously forecast.
Higher sea levels allow storm surge to penetrate farther inland, meaning flood damage will
increase even if hurricanes do not get any stronger.
No matter how scurrilous the actions of the oil companies, will the plaintiffs be able to show that the actions have resulted in
higher atmospheric CO2
levels, rising
seas, and significant
increased infrastructure costs for the plaintiffs?
[2011 paper 157 cites] Exploring
high - end scenarios for local
sea level rise to develop flood protection strategies for a low - lying delta — the Netherlands as an example Sea level rise, especially combined with possible changes in storm surges and increased river discharge resulting from climate change, poses a major threat in low - lying river delt
sea level rise to develop flood protection strategies for a low - lying delta — the Netherlands as an example
Sea level rise, especially combined with possible changes in storm surges and increased river discharge resulting from climate change, poses a major threat in low - lying river delt
Sea level rise, especially combined with possible changes in storm surges and
increased river discharge resulting from climate change, poses a major threat in low - lying river deltas.
Other than possibly slightly
higher sea levels, I see a lot of good coming from
increased vegetative growth, and more arable land for vegetation to grow in.
«This perspective article focuses on intervals in time in the fossil record when atmospheric CO2 concentrations
increased up to 1200 ppmv, temperatures in mid - to
high - latitudes
increased by greater than 4 °C within 60 years, and
sea levels rose by up to 3 m
higher than present.
Similar negative effects occur with worsening air pollution —
higher levels of ground -
level ozone smog and other pollutants that
increase with warmer temperatures have been directly linked with
increased rates of respiratory and cardiovascular disease — food production and safety — warmer temperatures and varying rainfall patterns mess up staple crop yields and aid the migration and breeding of pests that can devastate crops — flooding — as rising
sea levels make coastal areas and densely - populated river deltas more susceptible to storm surges and flooding that result from severe weather — and wildfires, which can be ancillary to
increased heat waves and are also responsible for poor air quality (not to mention burning people's homes and crops).
So, the positive feedback between melt and velocities implies that more melt leads to
higher velocities, which bring in more ice from cold regions to warm regions which
increases the melt and hence the velocity etc, with as a final result a rapid loss of ice and hence an enhanced
increased sea level.
Granted, it is «slow» right now, but the melting has been
increasing quite substantially, and whereas the IPCC had been speaking in the neighborhood of a
sea level increase of 50 cm, figures between one to two meters are becoming common as the result of the observed
higher rates since, and with the nonlinear processes and resulting positive feedback, Jim Hansen has suggested that a
sea level doubling per decade and
increase of several meters (up to 5 m) by the end of the century is more realistic.
As for
increased sealife around oil rigs as a good thing (previous comment)-- please note that
sea life congregates around outcroppings in the ocean — in the case of oil rigs though, the
sea life ends up with dangerously
high levels of mercury from mercury contaminated drilling muds.
WMO will issue its full Statement on the State of the Climate in 2017 in March which will provide a comprehensive overview of temperature variability and trends,
high - impact events, and long - term indicators of climate change such as
increasing carbon dioxide concentrations, Arctic and Antarctic
sea ice,
sea level rise and ocean acidification.
The Royal Society report includes references to Clark et al, 2016 in Nature Climate Change, suggesting the final
sea level rise on millennia timescale caused by anthropogenic climate change (partly depending on future emissions) lies in a range between 29 to 55 metres and to DeConto & Pollard, 2016 in Nature, a study suggesting hydro - fracturing and ice cliff collapse around Antarctic ice sheets
increases high end projection for
sea level rise by 2100 to ± 2 metres.
This is intellectual territory already well explored: researchers have repeatedly established that
sea level rise is
increasing; that the cost to human society will be enormous; and that with the combination of rising temperatures and
higher tides, more destructive superstorms are all but inevitable.
Whether we look at the steady
increase in global temperature; the buildup of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere to the
highest level in a half - million years; the march of warmest - ever years (9 of the10 hottest on record have occurred since 2000); the dramatic shrinking of mountain glaciers and Arctic
sea ice; the accelerating rise in
sea level; or the acidification of our oceans; the tale told by the evidence is consistent and it is compelling.
Each base's exposure is calculated based on the National Climate Assessment's midrange or «intermediate -
high»
sea level rise scenario (referred to in this analysis as «intermediate»), which projects a global average
increase of 3.7 feet above 2012
levels, by 2100; and a «
highest» scenario based on a more rapid rate of
increase, which projects a global average
increase of 6.3 feet.
resulting in
increased severity and / or intensity of heat waves, heavy precipitation events, droughts, tropical cyclones and extreme
high sea levels [AR4 WGI SPM, p. 8],
The station's exposure to coastal flooding is projected for the years 2050, 2070, and 2100 based on the National Climate Assessment's midrange or «intermediate -
high»
sea level rise scenario (referred to here as «intermediate») and a «
highest» scenario based on a more rapid rate of
increase.
The shipyard's exposure to coastal flooding is projected for the years 2050, 2070, and 2100 based on the National Climate Assessment's midrange or «intermediate -
high»
sea level rise scenario (referred to here as «intermediate») and a «
highest» scenario based on a more rapid rate of
increase.
New studies also found
high risk areas such as Hampton Roads in Virginia now featured tens of thousands of properties under such serious threat of flooding that only FEMA will provide them with insurance — a number that will continue to
increase along with the
sea levels (globally at 3.3 millimeters of
increase per year but as
high as 7 - 8 mm per year in some regions).
We may have just about 30 years left until the world's carbon budget is spent if we want a likely chance of limiting warming to 2 degrees C. Breaching this limit would put the world at
increased risk of forest fires, coral bleaching,
higher sea level rise, and other dangerous impacts.
Some studies have suggested that
sea levels during that time were several meters
higher than they are today; such an
increase in
sea levels would threaten, and could even inundate, coastal cities.
However, the mean
sea level variations inferred from the remnants of the Roman era suggest that a similar
high rate of
increase may have occurred more than 2,000 years ago.
Sea Level: Delegates included new text on the timeframe indicating: a transition in the late 19th to early 20th century from relatively low mean rates of rise over the previous two millennia to higher rates («high confidence»); and that the rate of global mean sea level rise has «likely» (66 - 100 % probability) continued to increase since the early 20th centu
Sea Level: Delegates included new text on the timeframe indicating: a transition in the late 19th to early 20th century from relatively low mean rates of rise over the previous two millennia to higher rates («high confidence»); and that the rate of global mean sea level rise has «likely» (66 - 100 % probability) continued to increase since the early 20th cen
Level: Delegates included new text on the timeframe indicating: a transition in the late 19th to early 20th century from relatively low mean rates of rise over the previous two millennia to
higher rates («
high confidence»); and that the rate of global mean
sea level rise has «likely» (66 - 100 % probability) continued to increase since the early 20th centu
sea level rise has «likely» (66 - 100 % probability) continued to increase since the early 20th cen
level rise has «likely» (66 - 100 % probability) continued to
increase since the early 20th century.
SLR satellite data includes things such as the «GIA Adjustment» — which is the amount of SLR that there would have been if the ocean basin hadn't
increased in volume and in the case of this new study, how much
higher the
sea surface would have been if it had not been suppressed by the Mount Pinatubo volcanic eruption, another correction for ENSO / PDO «computed via a joint cyclostationary empirical orthogonal function (CSEOF) analysis of altimeter GMSL, GRACE land water storage, and Argo - based thermosteric sea level from 2005 to present», as well as other additions and adjustments — NONE OF WHICH can actually be found manifested in any change to the physical Sea Surface Height.&raq
sea surface would have been if it had not been suppressed by the Mount Pinatubo volcanic eruption, another correction for ENSO / PDO «computed via a joint cyclostationary empirical orthogonal function (CSEOF) analysis of altimeter GMSL, GRACE land water storage, and Argo - based thermosteric
sea level from 2005 to present», as well as other additions and adjustments — NONE OF WHICH can actually be found manifested in any change to the physical Sea Surface Height.&raq
sea level from 2005 to present», as well as other additions and adjustments — NONE OF WHICH can actually be found manifested in any change to the physical
Sea Surface Height.&raq
Sea Surface Height.»
Increasing sea level is not predicted to be of great consequence to most coastal species, as they can simply move
higher up on the shore.