Comments on: Sea Level Rise Could Hit North America Hardest

By: Deborah Teramis Christian

Deborah Teramis Christian — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 17:20:47 +0000

Thanks for the concise summation of some complex issues, Allison. I'm writing about sea level rises and science fiction at my blog, and referenced your article in a recent post. You can see that here, in part 2 of a 3-part series: New York Under Water, pt 2: What Does a 2-Meter Sea Rise Look Like?

By: JW

JW — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 06:55:20 +0000

I’m a believer …when should I sell my land in Florida? What is the best quess on the Southeastern coastline under the worst case scenario? (Not withstanding a 90 degree polar shift and a ‘12 to 6′ spin?)

By: Allison Bond

Allison Bond — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 17:27:09 +0000

Zammy, your comment intrigued me, so I turned to David Holland, the atmospheric and ocean scientist at NYU quoted in the story. Here’s what he said:

“The temperature effect on ocean expansion due to melting of the ice currently below sea level is a small effect. The real point to keep in mind is that it is the ice that is sitting on top of the ice that is below sea level that is the main issue. When that ice goes into the ocean, average global sea level goes up and nothing counteracts that. This is the principal contributor to global sea level rise – all other factors (and there are many) are of secondary importance.

As for the comment, ‘The sea levels rising along with temperatures is not a fully proven fact,’ actually I would say observational evidence is exactly the opposite. As direct evidence, there are excellent records of global air temperature for over the last 100 years and global sea level, and both are rising in concert. And from indirect evidence, the air temperature and sea level records taken from a variety of ice cores and sediment cores spanning the last one million years conclusively show that when the temperatures on the planet are high the sea level is high, and when the temperatures are low the sea level is low.”

By: Zammy

Zammy — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 15:40:29 +0000

The sea levels rising along with temperatures is not a fully proven fact. A lot of the ice is below sealevel (’tip of the iceberg’, Titanic etc.), if not most of the ice, and with warmer temperatures it becomes water, which occupies less space than the ice it came from. So the sea levels could actually be sinking.

By: Wilbur Scott

Wilbur Scott — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 19:25:12 +0000

There is a remote possibility that as the ice melts the liquid water and loose ice will migrate to the equator. The added mass at the equator would in turn put more pressure on the earths crust in that area and result in an increase in volcanic activity in that area.
The redistribution of mass around the earth’s axis may also initiate a change in the movements of tectonic plates. And so on and so on. How fast this may happen may be faster than anyone can predict.

By: Jack Pennworth, M.S.

Jack Pennworth, M.S. — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 02:21:56 +0000

These predictions are very possible. As far as this article is concerned, it seems that it clearly states there is no consensus among experts and all of this is still up for debate. That said, we all must understand that there may not be alternatives. Planning for the worst case scenario is perhaps our only choice.

By: Warren E.B.B.

Warren E.B.B. — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 16:12:11 +0000

Could someone put these people in a room with those that offer wildly different predictions? Nils-Axel Mörner is probably the most famous critic of sea level rises. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nils-Axel_M%C3%B6rner
What do these researchers think of his criticisms?

It disturbs me that this article promotes these new predictions as very possible, without noting the alternatives. This leaves the public in a confusing haze of ever shifting (and sometimes directly conflicting) predictions from the scientific community. Not knowing whose “simplified computer models” to trust is quite terrifying.