Ocean Dynamics Speed Sea-Level Rise Along US East Coast

Alexandria, VA - Changing Gulf Stream patterns, shifting climate, and increased computing powers are helping answer why sea-level rise on the U.S. East Coast is higher than the global averages, according to a new story in Earth Magazine.

With implications for public safety in the wake of events like Hurricane Sandy, scientists are paying even closer attention to the role ocean dynamics play. Using historical tidal gauge and satellite data, geoscientists have observed that already fast sea-level changes on the U.S. East Coast sped up during the last 20 years. Addressing this change, scientists at the University of Arizona and elsewhere plugged the data into sophisticated models to examine how ocean dynamics affect sea-level rise. The results pinpoint a northward shift in the Gulf Stream that is affecting ocean water density in a complex way.

Explore these complexities in the February issue of Earth Magazine: http://bit.ly/1nb48WG. Download the full issue, or subscribe to read more original stories, including articles about harvesting fog for drinking water and using geophysics to locate underground coal fires. And don’t miss our three original features on the 2013 Colorado Front Range Floods at www.earthmagazine.org.

Keep up to date with the latest happenings in Earth, energy and environment news with Earth magazine online at http://www.earthmagazine.org/. Published by the American Geosciences Institute, Earth is your source for geoscience news.