Title: Sea Level Rise | Smithsonian Ocean
Headings: Smithsonian Ocean
Smithsonian Ocean
Sea Level Rise
History of Sea Level Rise
Last Glacial Period
Sea Level on the Rise
Why is it Rising?
Thermal Expansion
Melting Ice
Other Contributions
Modern Sea Level
Measuring Global Sea Level
Changing Regional and Local Sea Levels
Impacts
Storms and Flooding
Changing Coastlines
Saltwater Intrusion
There's No Place Like Home
Regional Case Studies
Florida and the U.S. Gulf Coast
Island Nations
Alaska
River Deltas
Future Sea Level & Adaptation
Reducing Emissions
Holding Back the Sea
Moving Inland
Additional Resources

Content: Between 1900 and 1990 studies show that sea level rose between 1.2 millimeters
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and 1.7 millimeters
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per year on average. By 2000, that rate had increased to about 3.2 millimeters per year and the rate in 2016 is estimated at 3.4 millimeters per year
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. Sea level is expected to rise even more quickly by the end of the century. Scientists agree
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that the changes in climate that we are seeing today are largely caused by human activity, and it's climate change that drives sea level rise. Sea level started rising in the late 1800s, soon after we started burning coal, gas and other fossil fuels for energy. When burned, these high-energy fuel sources send carbon dioxide up into the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide absorbs heat from the sun and traps it, warming the atmosphere and the planet. As the planet gets warmer, sea level rises for two reasons. First, warmer temperatures cause ice on land like glaciers and ice sheets to melt, and the meltwater flows into the ocean to increase sea level. Second, warm water expands and takes up more space than colder water, increasing the volume of water in the sea.