darxus: (Default)
darxus ([personal profile] darxus) wrote2012-01-12 01:34 pm
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Looks like Boston won't be sinking due to global warming in my life time

Highest projected sea level increase by 2100: 200 cm = 2 m = 6.6 feet (from wikipedia)
Interactive map showing what areas would be flooded: http://geology.com/sea-level-rise/

I'm not suggesting that climate change isn't one of the many reasons we're doomed, or that there aren't lots of people currently living in places that might be likely to get flooded. Or that this kind of rise couldn't make hurricanes much more interesting in Boston. But I think somebody recently commented to me that Boston was in danger of being flooded due to sea level rise, and I just got an email from my mom on a slightly related subject, which caused me to try to look this stuff up.

[identity profile] sensesurfer.livejournal.com 2012-01-12 07:45 pm (UTC)(link)
The map shows what would be flooded on a calm day. Add a tropical storm or a hurricane which can easily add another 10-15' of storm surge and you end up with a very different situation.

[identity profile] darxus.livejournal.com 2012-01-12 08:07 pm (UTC)(link)
I did include in my post "I'm not suggesting that... this kind of rise couldn't make hurricanes much more interesting in Boston."

I realize it can cause problems. It just turned out that the scale of ocean level rise was smaller than I had been thinking.