Climate-change–driven accelerated sea-level rise detected in the altimeter era

Abstract

Significance Satellite altimetry has shown that global mean sea level has been rising at a rate of ∼3 ± 0.4 mm/y since 1993. Using the altimeter record coupled with careful consideration of interannual and decadal variability as well as potential instrument errors, we show that this rate is accelerating at 0.084 ± 0.025 mm/y 2 , which agrees well with climate model projections. If sea level continues to change at this rate and acceleration, sea-level rise by 2100 (∼65 cm) will be more than double the amount if the rate was constant at 3 mm/y.

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Affiliated Institutions

• Stinger Ghaffarian Technologies (United States) US
• Centre National d'Études Spatiales FR
• Old Dominion University US
• Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences US
• University of Colorado Boulder US
• University of South Florida St. Petersburg US
• NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research US
• Goddard Space Flight Center US
• College of Marin US
• Dominion University College GH

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