Carling Hay reports that the oceans are now rising far faster than they did in the past. The study found that for much of the 20th century until about 1990 sea level was about 30 percent less than earlier research had figured. But that is not good news, scientists say, because about 25 years ago the seas started rising faster and the acceleration in 1990 turns out to be more dramatic than previously calculated. The current sea level rise rate which started in 1990 is 2.5 times faster than it was from 1900 to 1990, according to a study published Wednesday in the journal Nature. Scientists say that the faster pace of sea level rise is from melting ice sheets in Greenland and West Antarctica and shrinking glaciers, triggered by man-made global warming. Carling Hay, a geophysical Ph.D. at Harvard University, reports that based on his research a significant acceleration in the past few decades is underway, which is of concern for cities along the U.S. East Coast where water levels are rising even faster than the world average. Previous research said that between 1900 and 1990, the seas rose about two-thirds of an inch a decade. The new study recalculates the 1900-1990 rate to less than half an inch a decade. Old and new research both indicate that since 1990 seas are rising at about 1.2 inches a decade.
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