Parts of the US and Mexico are changing as sea levels rise, scientists say

According to the US Geological Survey, the state of Louisiana has already lost more than 3,200 square miles of land between 1932 and 2016.

The coastline of the Gulf of Mexico is changing a lot, which will affect the territory of the United States and Mexico in the future. Nature Communications has published the results of related observations.

Researchers from Tulane University noted that the bay’s coastline is changing rapidly. Sea levels in the region are rising about one centimeter per year.

Experts compared satellite and field measurements between 1900 and 2021. Scientists drew attention to the record rate of sea level rise in the last 12 years. Significant erosion of coastlines has been recorded from Cape Hatteras in North Carolina to the Gulf of Mexico. The highest rates were in this location.

Representatives of the scientific community determined what the preconditions for the loss of ice mass and air pressure in the region are. They concluded that the only explanation for the negative trend could be the anthropogenic factor.

In the region, there is a certain correlation between sea level rise and the corresponding rates of global warming. Scientists noted that the trend is the most dangerous for two states – Louisiana and Texas. Experts noted that “where the land is already submerged”, rising sea levels are affecting the loading process on sensitive shorelines.

Thorbjorn Tornqvist, co-author of the study, considered the soil erosion characteristic of this region when discussing the situation in these two states. Louisiana lost more than 3,200 square feet. km of land. The Texas region is also disappearing at a tremendous rate – about one meter per year. Florida was also included in the list of regions with a negative trend. However, for this state, hurricanes and floods, which will increase in frequency due to climate change, are more unsafe.

On April 12, scientists warned that the Earth would be covered in heat waves and disasters. In recent years, the scientific community has been trying to find a way to reduce the pace of global warming on the planet, but so far no positive results have been achieved.

Source: Focus

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