4 facts about sea level rise

3. Sea-level rise affects coastal communities across the globe, but the global South is disproportionally affected.

The sea level doesn't rise equally around the globe. In the tropics, the sea level for example rises 30% more than the global average. Why is that the case? Prof. Box outlines two main reasons:

The gravitational fingerprint: When large ice masses melt, they alter the Earth's gravitational field. As the Greenland ice sheet loses ice, its gravitational pull weakens, causing nearby ocean waters to move away from Greenland towards faraway areas of the planet. This phenomenon, known as the 'gravitational fingerprint', results in uneven sea-level changes across the globe.

The land is not rising - compared to, for example, Scandinavia. Parts of Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland were covered under a heavy ice sheet during the most recent ice age. As the ice retreated, the landmasses started rising. This is called a postglacial rebound. This rebound is to some extent counteracting the effects of sea level rise in the region. Yet, as the tropics were not covered in ice, they do not experience this rebound effect.

Major cities in the Western Northern Hemisphere, including London, Copenhagen, Dublin, and New York, are projected to experience significant sea-level rise-potentially up to 2 meters by the end of the century if global temperatures would increase by 5 degrees Celsius[2]. "While this will pose costly challenges for northern cities, they generally have more resources to adapt compared to cities and countries in the Global South. Additionally, large river deltas like the Mekong, Nile, and Niger, which are critical agricultural regions feeding millions of people, may be far less resilient to the impacts of rising sea levels," says Jason Box.