Department of Geosciences Environmental Studies Laboratory : Research
 

Climate Change and Sea Level


Overview

The Arctic has been warming dramatically and virtually all glaciers, ice caps, and ice sheets are melting. Sea ice is also retreating and thinning. We are combining a synthesis of existing cyrosphere and sea level data that extends back one million years with coupled climate system simulations of the last interglacial and the future in order to understand what might be going on in the Arctic today and what it means for the future. Results (see AGU webcast below) indicate that the earth will be warm enough in less than 150 years (assuming no reduction in greenhouse gas emissions) to melt the Greenland Ice Cap. This change could also lead to four to six meters of sea level rise at a rates of up to two to five centimeters per year.

Our work also focuses on the possible impacts of rapid sea level rise in the future.


Related Research Focus Links

Abrupt Climate Change
Arctic System Variability


Related Outside Links

Jonathan Overpeck's Lecture at AGU 2002


Present and Recent Collaborators

J. Kiehl, G. Miller, B. Otto-Bleisner, J. Weiss, colleagues from PARCS and CAPE


Funding Agencies

National Science Foundation National Science Foundation


References

Otto-Bliesner, B.L., J. Marshall, J.T. Overpeck, G.H. Miller, A. Hu, and CAPE Last Interglacial Project members. 2006. Simulating Arctic climate warmth and icefield retreat in the Last Interglaciation. Science 311: 1751-1753.

Overpeck, J.T., B.L. Otto-Bliesner, G.H. Miller, D.R. Muhs, R.B. Alley, and J.T. Kiehl. 2006. Paleoclimatic evidence for future ice-sheet instability and rapid sea-level rise. Science 311: 1747-1750.

Mailing Address
1040 E. Fourth St.
Department of Geosciences
University of Arizona
Gould-Simpson Room 208
Tucson, AZ 85721-0077

Telephone Number
1.520.621.8025

Facsimile Number
1.520.621.2672

 

 


Sea Level of Last Interglacial



Melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet during Last Interglacial



Future Melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet?



Rising Sea Levels
 

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Environmental Studies Laboratory, Department of Geosciences, The University of Arizona
All contents © 2003 Arizona Board of Regents
Send comments or questions to Jeremy Weiss, jlweiss@email.arizona.edu

Earth image retreived from http://www.osei.noaa.gov/Events/Unique/ on 14 January 2003

Last updated March 27, 2006
Document located at http://www.geo.arizona.edu/dgesl/research/other/climate_change_and_sea_level/climate_change_and_sea_level.htm
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