. 24/7 Space News .
WATER WORLD
NASA team find evidence of sea level 'fingerprints'
by Staff Writers
Pasadena CA (JPL) Sep 12, 2017


Sea level rise fingerprints calculated from observations of mass changes in Greenland, Antarctica, continental glaciers and ice caps, and land water storage made by the GRACE satellites, January 2003 to April 2014. See link for detailed global map of recent sea level changes

Researchers from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, and the University of California, Irvine, have reported the first detection of sea level "fingerprints" in ocean observations: detectable patterns of sea level variability around the world resulting from changes in water storage on Earth's continents and in the mass of ice sheets. The results will give scientists confidence they can use these data to determine how much the sea level will rise at any point on the global ocean as a result of glacier ice melt.

As ice sheets and glaciers undergo climate-related melting, they alter Earth's gravity field, resulting in sea level changes that aren't uniform around the globe. For example, when a glacier loses ice mass, its gravitational attraction is reduced. Ocean waters nearby move away, causing sea level to rise faster far away from the glacier.

The resulting pattern of sea level change is known as a sea level fingerprint. Certain regions, particularly in Earth's middle and low latitudes, are hit harder, and Greenland and Antarctica contribute differently to the process. For instance, sea level rise in California and Florida generated by the melting of the Antarctic ice sheet is up to 52 percent greater than its average effect on the rest of the world.

To calculate sea level fingerprints associated with the loss of ice from glaciers and ice sheets and from changes in land water storage, the team used gravity data collected by the twin satellites of the U.S./German Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) between April 2002 and October 2014.

During that time, the loss of mass from land ice and from changes in land water storage increased global average sea level by about 0.07 inch (1.8 millimeters) per year, with 43 percent of the increased water mass coming from Greenland, 16 percent from Antarctica and 30 percent from mountain glaciers. The scientists then verified their calculations of sea level fingerprints using readings of ocean-bottom pressure from stations in the tropics.

"Scientists have a solid understanding of the physics of sea level fingerprints, but we've never had a direct detection of the phenomenon until now," said co-author Isabella Velicogna, UCI professor of Earth system science and JPL research scientist.

"It was very exciting to observe the sea level fingerprints in the tropics, far from the glaciers and ice sheets," said lead author Chia-Wei Hsu, a graduate student researcher at UCI.

The findings are published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. The research project was supported by UCI and NASA's Earth Science Division.

WATER WORLD
Japanese seaweed is welcome invader on US coasts: study
Miami (AFP) July 17, 2017
A kind of Japanese seaweed that is considered an invasive species in the United States is actually serving an important role in restoring barren and vulnerable coastlines, US researchers said Monday. In many lagoons and estuaries of the North Atlantic, native seagrasses and oyster beds have been "severely reduced," due to global warming, pollution, disease and overharvesting, said the report ... read more

Related Links
GRACE at NASA
Water News - Science, Technology and Politics


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

WATER WORLD
Crewed Missions Beyond LEO

Three astronauts blast off for five-month ISS mission

NASA Offers Space Station as Catalyst for Discovery in Washington

Voyager Spacecraft: 40 Years of Solar System Discoveries

WATER WORLD
Rocket fever launches UB students to engineering competition in New Mexico

Arianespace announces a new contract, bringing its order book to 53 launches across three rockets

EUMETSAT signs with Arianespace for first Metop-SG satellite launch

MHI to launch first Inmarsat-6 satellite

WATER WORLD
45 Kilometers on the Odometry for Opportunity

Discovery of boron on Mars adds to evidence for habitability

New tools for exploring the surface of Mars

NASA's Curiosity Mars Rover Climbing Toward Ridge Top

WATER WORLD
China, Russia to Have Smooth Space Cooperation, Says Expert

Kuaizhou-11 to send six satellites into space

Russia, China May Sign 5-Year Agreement on Joint Space Exploration

ESA and Chinese astronauts train together

WATER WORLD
ASTROSCALE Raises a Total of $25 Million in Series C Led by Private Companies

LISA Pathfinder: bake, rattle and roll

Bids for government funding prove strong interest in LaunchUK

Blue Sky Network Reaffirms Commitment to Brazilian Market

WATER WORLD
Two new satellites now operational to expand US space situational awareness

Ultrathin spacecraft will collect, deposit orbital debris

192 Indian space objects currently in orbit

New microscopy method for quick and reliable 3-D imaging of curvilinear nanostructures

WATER WORLD
X-Rays Reveal Temperament of Possible Planet-Hosting Stars

Does the Organic Material of Comets Predate our Solar System?

X-rays Reveal Temperament of Possible Planet-hosting Stars

Could TRAPPIST-1's Seven Earth-size Planets Have Gas Giant Siblings

WATER WORLD
Jupiter's Auroras Present a Powerful Mystery

Pluto features given first official names

New Horizons Files Flight Plan for 2019 Flyby

Hibernation Over, New Horizons Continues Kuiper Belt Cruise









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.