"Rising Seas Will Erase More Cities by 2050, New Research Shows"

"Rising seas could affect three times more people by 2050 than previously thought, according to new research, threatening to all but erase some of the world’s great coastal cities.

The authors of a paper published Tuesday developed a more accurate way of calculating land elevation based on satellite readings, a standard way of estimating the effects of sea level rise over large areas, and found that the previous numbers were far too optimistic. The new research shows that some 150 million people are now living on land that will be below the high-tide line by midcentury.

Southern Vietnam could all but disappear. ...

Standard elevation measurements using satellites struggle to differentiate the true ground level from the tops of trees or buildings, said Scott A. Kulp, a researcher at Climate Central and one of the paper’s authors. So he and Benjamin Strauss, Climate Central’s chief executive, used artificial intelligence to determine the error rate and correct for it."

Denise Lu and Christopher Flavelle report for the New York Times October 29, 2019.

SEE ALSO:

"Scientists Triple Their Estimates Of The Number Of People Threatened By Rising Seas" (Washington Post)

"Far More People At Risk Of Rising Seas Than Feared: Climate Study" (Reuters)

Source: NY Times, 10/30/2019