(Bloomberg) — Global sea levels are rising faster than predicted as a result of warming temperatures driven by burning fossil fuels, according to researchers who now say an increase of at least 3-feet (1 meter) is likely "unavoidable."
The world's oceans, expanding due to added heat and melting ice, have risen an average of almost 3 inches since 1992, with some areas seeing an increase of as much as 9 inches, NASA scientists said at a briefing Wednesday that cited new satellite data. Heat already stored in the sea means further sea level rise is almost certain, although how quickly remains unclear, according to a statement from the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
"People need to be prepared," Josh Willis, an oceanographer at the agency's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, said on a conference call. "We're going to continue to have sea level rise for decades and probably centuries."
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