A study published in the journal Nature found that, staring in 1990, the sea has been rising at a rate 2.5 times faster than from 1900 to 1990.
This is quicker than scientists thought. Previous research suggested that between 1900 and 1990, sea levels rose about two-thirds of an inch every decade. The new study calculated that the rate was actually less than half an inch a decade, and today, the seas are rising at 1.2 inches every decade. Scientists say this is all caused by melting ice sheets in Greenland and West Antarctica and disappearing glaciers.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
7 drinks for every winter need possibleThe Week Recommends Including a variety of base spirits and a range of temperatures
-
'We have made it a crime for most refugees to want the American dream'Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Was the Azerbaijan Airlines plane shot down?Today's Big Question Multiple sources claim Russian anti-aircraft missile damaged passenger jet, leading to Christmas Day crash that killed at least 38
-
2024: the year of extreme hurricanesIn the Spotlight An eagle eye at a deadly hurricane season
-
Chocolate is the latest climate change victim, but scientists may have solutionsUnder the radar Making the sweet treat sustainable
-
Hundreds feared dead in French Mayotte cycloneSpeed Read Cyclone Chido slammed into Mayotte, a French territory in the Indian Ocean
-
How would reaching net zero change our lives?Today's Big Question Climate target could bring many benefits but global heating would continue
-
Thirteen missing after Red Sea tourist boat sinksSpeed Read The vessel sank near the Egyptian coastal town of Marsa Alam
-
Global plastics summit starts as COP29 endsSpeed Read Negotiators gathering in South Korea seek an end to the world's plastic pollution crisis, though Trump's election may muddle the deal
-
What are Trump's plans for the climate?Today's big question Trump's America may be a lot less green
-
The bacterial consequences of hurricanesUnder the radar Floodwaters are microbial hotbeds
