Science Source
Robert E. Kopp, Andrew C. Kemp, Klaus Bittermann, Benjamin P. Horton, Jeffrey P. Donnelly, W. Roland Gehrels, Carling C. Hay, Jerry X. Mitrovica, Eric D. Morrow, Stefan Rahmstorf
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Published date January 4, 2016

Temperature-driven global sea-level variability in the Common Era

  • Presents the first estimate of global sea-level (GSL) change over the last ∼3,000 years that is based upon statistical synthesis of a global database of regional sea-level reconstructions
  • States GSL varied by ∼±8 cm over the pre-Industrial Common Era, with a notable decline over 1000–1400 CE coinciding with ∼0.2 °C of global cooling
  • Finds the 20th century rise was extremely likely faster than during any of the 27 previous centuries
  • Modeling indicates that without global warming, GSL in the 20th century very likely would have risen by between −3 cm and +7 cm, rather than the ∼14 cm observed
  • Stated another way, it finds that in the absence of anthropogenic climate change, it is extremely likely that 20th century GSL would have risen by less than 51% of the observed 13.8±1.513.8±1.5 cm

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