Sunday, July 28, 2019

Global Sea Level Rise Has Doubled in the Past Year

Global sea level rise has more than doubled in the past year according to NASA. Sea level rose 7.3 mm in the past year, versus the 3.3 mm average during the satellite era. (From a  little over a 1/10 inch per year to over a 1/4 inch in the past year). Between 3/16/18 and 3/28/19 sea level rose from 85.3 mm to 92.6 mm above the baseline in the record tracked since January 1, 1993. However, given how erratic the rise of global sea level in on an annual basis (and some years the decline), a one year period is too short a time frame to definitively say that sea level rise is accelerating. But the trend sure looks ugly.

While a 1/4 inch of sea level rise may not seem like a disaster in the making, if extrapolated over 10, 30, 50, or 100 years it is indeed going to be catastrophic. And the outcome gets far worse if sea level rise continues to accelerate, as many researchers have projected. Sunny day flooding is already a significant problem. Further, the crash in coastal real estate prices predicted by Joe Romm and others seems ever closer.

Source: https://climate.nasa.gov/vital-signs/sea-level/