Fact Check: "Climate change is causing sea levels to rise globally."
What We Know
Climate change is indeed causing global sea levels to rise, primarily due to two factors: thermal expansion of seawater and the melting of ice sheets and glaciers. According to a report from NASA, the ocean absorbs the majority of the excess heat from climate change, leading to thermal expansion, which accounts for about one-third of current sea level rise. The remaining two-thirds is attributed to the addition of water from melting ice sheets and glaciers on land (source-1).
Data collected from satellite altimetry missions, which have been in operation since the early 1990s, show that global mean sea levels have risen by approximately 11.1 cm from 1993 to 2023. The rate of sea level rise has accelerated significantly, doubling from about 2.1 mm per year in 1993 to 4.5 mm per year by 2024 (source-3). The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) projects that if current trends continue, global sea levels could rise between 1.4 and 2.7 feet by 2100 (source-2).
Analysis
The evidence supporting the claim that climate change is causing sea levels to rise is robust and comes from multiple credible sources. The data from NASA and the French Space Agency, which have utilized satellite altimetry for over three decades, provides high-accuracy measurements of sea level changes (source-1). Furthermore, the scientific consensus is reinforced by the IPCC's projections, which are based on extensive climate modeling and observational data (source-2).
The reliability of these sources is high, as they are backed by significant scientific research and peer-reviewed studies. For instance, the article published in Communications Earth & Environment details the acceleration of sea level rise and provides a comprehensive analysis of the contributing factors (source-3). Additionally, the World Economic Forum highlights the global implications of rising sea levels, noting that climate change is impacting over a billion people worldwide (source-6).
While some may argue that natural geological processes and local factors can influence sea levels, the overwhelming evidence indicates that human-induced climate change is the primary driver of the current trends in global sea level rise.
Conclusion
The claim that "climate change is causing sea levels to rise globally" is True. The evidence from satellite measurements, scientific studies, and climate models consistently supports this assertion. The significant acceleration in the rate of sea level rise, primarily due to thermal expansion and melting ice, is a direct consequence of rising global temperatures driven by climate change.
