Today we will talk about climate change and rising water levels in the earth. Scientists have found out in research that the sea level in our earth had increased in the same way about 3200 years ago, so know what the scientists said, so let’s go to the research side. The study was carried out in collaboration with scientists from Harvard University, University of New Mexico, University of Balearic Islands, University Rome Tre, Rutgers University, Australian National University, Los Alamos National Laboratory and the University of Bern.
The early 1900’s was a time of global excitement, with rapid developments in the steel, electrical, and automotive industries. Industrial change also marks the point of our climate change. According to a team of international researchers led by the University of South Florida (USF), sea levels have risen by 18 inches from the beginning of the 20th century. This study, presented on the cover of the July 1 issue of Science Advances, works to identify pre-industrial ocean levels and examines the impact of modern greenhouse gases on sea level rise. The team, which includes USF graduates, has traveled to Mallorca, Spain – home to more than 1,000 cave systems, some of which have deposits built millions of years ago. In this study, they focused on analyzing deposits from 4,000 years ago to the present.
The team found evidence of an unpredictable 20-inch [20 cm] sea level rise nearly 3,200 years ago when glaciers naturally melted within 400 years at an average of 0.5 mm per year. Otherwise, despite major weather events such as the Medieval Warm Period and the Little Ice Age, sea level remained relatively stable until 1900.
“The results reported in our study are alarming,” said lead author Bogdan P. Onac, a professor of geology at USF. “Rising sea levels since the 1900’s have never been higher compared to the natural changes of ice 4,000 years ago. This means that if global temperatures continue to rise, sea levels could eventually reach higher levels than previously thought.”To build a timeline, the team collected 13 samples from eight caves along the Mediterranean Coast. Deposits are rare – they form only along the coast in caves that are frequently flooded with seawater, making them an accurate marker of sea level changes over time. Each deposit contains important insights into both the past and the future, helping researchers determine how fast sea levels will rise in the decades and hundreds of years to come.
Samples were taken to the University of New Mexico and the University of Bern in Switzerland, where specialized tools were used to determine their age using the uranium chain method. Over time, uranium decomposes into other elements such as thorium and lead, allowing researchers to create a sea-time line written down on each deposit.
Harvard University sophisticated software that helped generate forecasts using various ice models and geographical boundaries to reflect accurate maritime history. These predictions are important because they allow researchers to estimate the global sea level, which is key to dealing with future sea level rise.”If people continue to be big drivers and temperatures rise by 1.5 degrees soon, there will be irreparable damage,” said Onac. “There will be no turning back from then on.”Based on the loss of ice from Antarctic and Greenland, the average sea level rise since 2008 is 1.43 millimeters per year.
Permanent floods from rising sea levels will not occur overnight, but Onac says it will be most noticeable during storms and hurricanes. With about 40 percent of the world’s population living within 40 miles [62 km] of coastline, rising sea levels could be catastrophic and have significant social and economic consequences.”Even if we stop right now, sea levels will continue to rise for at least a few decades, if not hundreds of years, because the system is warming up.”
In June, Onac received a new study grant from the National Science Foundation to continue its research into predicting future sea level rise due to global warming. The funding will allow Onac to extend research into history for 130,000 years and create a better understanding of global sea level. Starting in September, Onac and his team will begin analyzing investments in caves from around the world, including Italy, Greece, Mexico and Cuba. The study was conducted in collaboration with scientists from Harvard University, University of New Mexico, University of the Balearic Islands, University of Rome Tre, Rutgers University, Australian National University, Los Alamos National Laboratory and University of Bern.
Source Journal Reference: Bogdan P. Onac, Jerry X. Mitrovica, JoaquÃn Ginés, Yemane Asmerom, Victor J. Polyak, Paola Tuccimei, Erica L. Ashe, Joan J. Fornós, Mark J. Hoggard, Sophie Coulson, Angel Ginés, Michele Soligo, Igor M. Villa. Exceptionally stable preindustrial sea level inferred from the western Mediterranean Sea. Science Advances, 2022; 8 (26) DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abm6185
