Discuss the relationship between sea level change and global warming, and explai

Question

Discuss the relationship between sea level change and global warming, and explain how the current global warming is likely caused by human activity

Here is help for discussion

2. Explain how 1st order and 2nd order sea level change comes about

2. Explain how seal level was affected during glacial and interglacial episodes in the great Ice Age.

3. explain how greenhouse forcing trumps orbital forcing global climate change.

NB

Though any one could give the discussion in any arrangement to the liking of the student, the essential components are given above. you need to include at least two references.

Explanation / Answer

Relatioship between sea level change and global warming -

Due to global warming the sea level rising day by day by two mechanisms. First, shrinking land ice, such as mountain glaciers and polar ice sheets, is releasing water into the oceans. Second, as ocean temperatures rise, the warmer water expands. Trapped within a basin bounded by the continents, the water has nowhere to go but up. In some parts of the world, especially low-lying river deltas, local land is sinking (known as subsidence)—making sea levels that much higher. The consequences of sea level rise include-

- Threats to coastal communities - Some 40 percent of the world's population lives within 62 miles (100 kilometers) of the ocean, putting millions of lives and billions of dollars' worth of property and infrastructure at risk.

- High tides and storm surges riding on ever-higher seas are more dangerous to people and coastal infrastructure.

- Natural protections against damaging storm surges are increasingly threatened. Barrier islands, beaches, sand dunes, salt marshes, mangrove stands, and mud and sand flats retreat inland as sea level rises, unless there are obstructions along the retreat path. If they cannot move, these natural protections are washed over or drowned.

- Many shorelines have sea walls, jetties, and other artificial defenses to protect roads, buildings, and other vital coastal resources. In these areas, sea-level rise increases erosion of stranded beaches, wetlands, and engineered structures

- Saltwater Intrusion - Sea-level rise can mean that saltwater intrudes into groundwater drinking supplies, contaminates irrigation supplies, or overruns agricultural fields. Low-lying, gently sloping coastal areas are particularly vulnerable to contamination of freshwater supplies.

The current global warming is likely caused by human activity by many factors -

1. Direct evidence of human contribution to atmospheric CO2 -

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is the main heat-trapping gas largely responsible for most of the average warming over the past several decades.The atmospheric concentration of CO2has increased dramatically, from a pre-industrial era (AD 1000 – 1750) concentration of approximately 280 parts per million (ppm) to today's 400 ppm.

2. Emissions from cars and power plants and an increase in the amount of radiation the sun emits are examples of "forcings" that drive temperature rise, the first one by trapping heat, and the second one by increasing energy, which translated into heat. Volcanic events and some types of human-made pollution, both of which inject sunlight-reflecting aerosols (i.e., tiny particles) into the atmosphere, lower temperature and are examples of forcings that drive decreases in temperature.

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