The National Aeronautical and Space Administration (NASA) announced that in 2024 there was an “unexpected” increase in sea level.
The global sea level has increased the photo unexpectedly: Archive
It was found, in an analysis, that the growth rate was almost a quarter of an inch per year, compared to the expected rate of 0.17 inches. It is a worrying statistic, given the dangers that increase the sea level, including sending potentially fatal storm waves inside the land, threatening urban infrastructure, erosion of coasts and disrupting ecosystems, as well as provoking more frequent floods, reports The Independent.
“The growth we saw in 2024 was greater than we expected“Said Josh Willis, a sea level researcher at Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA in South California. “Every year is slightly different but what is clear is that the ocean continues to grow and the growth rate is more and more faster“He added.
Causes that contribute to increased levels of seas
NASA said that this growth was due to an “unusual” amount of heating of the oceans, as well as an influx of melted water from glaciers and other types of ice on the ground.
As the Earth warms up due to greenhouse gas emissions that retain heat, more than 90% of this heat is absorbed by oceans. This causes the ocean temperature to increase, and the water is dilated. It is a process known as “thermal expansion” that contributes to the increase of the level of the seas. The heating of the planet has caused about one third of the global increase in sea level observed by satellite altimeters since 2004.
While the thermal expansion was the main cause – and responsible for about two thirds of the sea level – about a third was caused by the melting of the glacial cap and glaciers.
The ice layer in Antarctica melts at an average rate of about 150 billion tons a year, and the one in Greenland loses about 270 billion tonnes per year, both contributing to the increase in sea level. The loss of the ice layer in Greenland is equivalent to the weight of 26,000 Eiffel towers, according to Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Colombia University.
The hottest year ever registered
The heating resulting from these processes has become more severe in recent years. It was also established that 2024 was the hottest year ever registered, with global temperatures with 2.3 degrees above the NASA average of the 20th century, from 1951 to 1980.
“With 2024 as the hottest year ever registered, the oceans of the Earth, expanding, follow the example, reaching the highest levels of the last three decades“, Said Nadya Vinogradova Shiffer, head of the physical oceanography programs and the integrated observer of the terrestrial system at the NASA headquarters.
Continuous growth will probably lead to a worrying future if no massive measures are taken to stop greenhouse gas emissions. The Central Climate Non-profit group estimates that by 2050, over four million hectares of US properties will be at least partially below the tidal line.
