The Worst Sea Level Rise Hits Tropical Countries Like Indonesia
Source: CNN Indonsia
Date: September 7, 2021
Jakarta, CNN Indonesia -- Scientists predict that extreme sea level rise along coastlines around the world will occur 100 times more frequently by the end of the century, especially in tropical regions such as Hawaii, the Caribbean, the Philippines and Indonesia.
This is based on a study conducted by Professor Roshanka Ranasinghe from IHE Delft and Deltares (Netherlands) with lead author Dr. Claudia Tebaldi of the US Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
According to the study, the impact of sea level rise at extreme sea level frequencies will be felt most severely in the tropical regions and generally at lower latitudes than northern latitudes.
"The locations most likely to be heavily affected are the Southern Hemisphere, areas along the Mediterranean Sea and the Arabian Peninsula, the southern Pacific coast of North America including Hawaii, the Caribbean, the Philippines, and Indonesia," a written statement received by CNN some time ago (31/8).
Meanwhile, areas that are less affected by sea level rise are areas of higher latitudes, such as the North Pacific Coast of North America, and the Pacific Coast of Asia.
The study brings together an international team of researchers from the United States, the Netherlands, Italy and Australia, who have led previous major studies of extreme sea level and the effects of rising sea surface temperatures.
The team collected data and introduced a new synthesis method to mapping the possible effects of a temperature rise from 1.5 degrees Celsius to 5 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial times.
"One of our main questions that drove this research was: how high is the warming of the earth's temperature to make an impact that normally occurs once every 100 years into an annual disaster? Our answer is nothing more than what is currently documented," Ranasinghe said.
"This is not surprising that a warming of 1.5 degrees Celsius will have a substantial effect on the frequency and magnitude of extreme sea level rise," he added.
The latest study, published in the August 30 issue of the journal Nature Climate Change, is in line with a statement from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which states that extreme sea level rise events will become more frequent and widespread worldwide due to global warming.
