Sea-level may Rise Up to 80cm by 2100

The sea level rise following the industrial revolution has been speedy, and may reach above 80cm by 2100, and around 2.5 by the year 2200

The sea level rise following the industrial revolution has been speedy, and may reach above 80cm by 2100, and around 2.5 by the year 2200.

Researchers from the University of Southampton and the Australian National University used geological evidence of the past few million years to derive a background pattern of natural sea-level rise.

Sea Levels Raised by 20m By Global Warming 5 Million Years Ago
Parts of Antarctica's large ice sheets could have been melted by global warming caused five million years ago and caused sea levels to rise by about 20 metres.

This was compared with historical tide-gauge and satellite observations of sea-level change for the 'global warming' period, since the industrial revolution.

Lead author Professor Eelco Rohling, from the Australian National University and formerly of the University of Southampton, said our natural background pattern from geological evidence should not be confused with a model-based prediction. It instead uses data to illustrate how fast sea level might change if only normal, natural processes were at work.

"There is no speculation about any new mechanisms that might develop due to man-made global warming. Put simply, we consider purely what nature has done before, and therefore could do again," Rohling said.

Findings: Ice Melt from Icebergs to Have Massive Impact on Sea Level Rise
According to new findings, stretches of ice on the coasts of Antarctica and Greenland are at risk of rapidly cracking apart and falling into the ocean, which could worsen sea level rise.

Rohling concluded saying that for the first time, they saw that the modern sea-level rise is quite fast by natural standards. Based on our natural background pattern, only about half the observed sea-level rise would be expected.

The study is published in journal Scientific Reports.

Source-ANI