Currently we are in the midst of climate change; specifically a dramatic increas
Currently we are in the midst of climate change; specifically a dramatic increase in our surface temperatures. This is resulting in a net decrease of not only of sea ice, but continental ice sheets & mountain glaciers as well. As you’ve learned, sea-level rise is one of the major concerns of this melting ice trend. How much will sea level rise at our current pace? Well, there are a few scenarios based on our future carbon dioxide emissions: anywhere from 1-4ft by 2050, all the way up to worst-case-scenario 4-10ft by 2100.
1. Start by opening the Sea Level Rise Viewer Site and then click the green “Get Started” button (see screenshot below).
When you first access the site, it will look like this:
2. In the search bar at the top, enter “Alameda, CA, USA”. You will see the current sea-level conditions at high water/tide. Use the “Water Level” slider bar on the left to change the water level height (up to 10 ft). As mentioned above, the scenarios of sea level rise vary. It is anticipated that sea level will rise anywhere from 1ft – 4ft by 2050, up to 4ft – 10ft by 2100. Explore what happens to Alameda and surrounding cities/areas as the water level changes (i.e., where does inundation/flooding occur? This is indicated in blue on the map). Take a screenshot or picture of the map of Alameda so I may view it. Next, answer the following prompt:
(A) Based on what you are seeing in the Sea Level Rise Viewer map of Alameda, briefly summarize which areas will be mostly impacted by inundation at various amounts of sea level rise.
3. Next, search for any other coastal city (other than Alameda and the Bay Area) and repeat what you did for Step 2. Note: this GIS has been recently updated and now only has sea level rise data for locations in the United States or a United States territory (such as Guam, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, etc.) – so, if you use this mapping tool, your second location must be within the U.S. or U.S. territories. If you would like to explore elsewhere, Google Earth has a good visual of other, global coastal cities (London, Mumbai, Shanghai, Lagos, and Rio De Janeiro). Please feel free to explore this alternative tool if you are interested in those locations and click on the “Tour Cities” button and . Take a screenshot or picture of the area/city/location you are looking at in your map so I may view it. Next, answer the following prompts:
(B) Based on what you are seeing in the Sea Level Rise Viewer map of the coastal location of your choosing, briefly summarize which areas will be mostly impacted by inundation at various amounts of sea level rise.
(C) Why is it important to make observations and predictions of sea level rise? What are the potential impacts the encroaching ocean will have on our coastal communities?
This is whole detail for this project