The resurfacing of the idea of developing northern Australia is akin to making a sequel for an old cinema classic. It evokes familiarity and the repackaging of tested and yet-to-be tested concepts. It…
Swings and roundabouts: sea level rises are hard to predict.
Danny Lawson/PA
Coastal and river flooding struck Britain again this week with huge waves hitting southern and western coasts and around 100 flood warnings still in place by Wednesday evening. Disturbing but, sadly, not…
Clearing snow for a helicopter rescue makes for a dramatic photo, but let’s not forget the science.
EPA/Andrew Peacock/Footloosefotography/spritiofmawson.com
As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words, and by now you might have seen dramatic images of passengers on stranded icebreaker Akademik Shokalskiy being rescued by helicopter last Friday…
Eroded beaches in Surfers Paradise on Queensland’s Gold Coast, May 2013.
John Reid, Environment Studio, ANU School of Art
As the science on the coastal impacts of climate change gets stronger, the protections for Australia’s coastal communities are getting weaker. If that continues, everyone will pay. Along the eastern seaboard…
Small numbers can imply big things. Global sea level rose by a little less than 0.2 metres during the 20th century – mainly in response to the 0.8 °C of warming humans have caused through greenhouse gas…
Increased coastal population growth and rising water levels could lead to damaged sewerage systems and water contamination.
Flickr/autowitch
Sea levels are rising and the world’s vast coastal settlements face many damaging changes. One of the most difficult and expensive challenges is the risk to the safe and effective operation of our sewerage…
Peer review is an essential part of science. Journal editors recruit scientists to provide expert opinion on manuscripts submitted by other scientists. Reviewers are expected to identify major errors and…
New Jersey was hit hard by the storm surge.
Michael Reynolds/AAP
As I write this, the worst coastal flooding effects from Hurricane Sandy’s attack on the densely populated regions of the US northeast are almost over. Even so, the effects have been significant: record…
Sea levels are rising globally at record-breaking rates and Antarctica is playing an increasing role.
Matt King
A small slice of Antarctica turns up along your coastline each year. We’re all glad it’s just a small slice, given Antarctica could deliver a total sea-level rise of 59 metres. That’s not going to happen…
Major short-term threats to the South Pole are said to include climate change impacts on marine systems, marine resource…
Scientists have a better understanding of the contribution of melting glacier and ice sheets to sea level rise, but much remains uncertain.
Flickr/ChrisGoldNY
Melting glaciers and ice sheets have contributed more to rising sea levels in the past decade than expansion from warming water, according to modelling in the latest report by the Antarctic Climate and…
The floods that engulfed Sydney on March 8 this year are expected to become a more common occurrence.
AAP/Paul Miller
Rising sea levels could threaten up to 60,000 houses, 1200 commercial buildings and 250 kilometres of highway in NSW by the end of the century, a report by the federal government’s Climate Commission says…
We need to know more about how ice sheets interact with the warming oceans and warming atmosphere.
Greenpeace/ADavies
Satellite and in situ observations show sea level is continuing to rise. In the last Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report, earth system model projections indicated global sea-level rise by…
Managing Director, Triple Helix Consulting; Chief Executive Officer, Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research; Professorial Fellow, ANU Fenner School for the Environment and Society, Australian National University