seal level rise Archives - Disasters News

Jan222025 by Editor DeskNo Comments

Ghana’s Coastal Erosion Crisis Threatens Communities and Heritage

The relentless advance of the sea along Ghana’s coast has not only erased significant portions of its landscape but also consumed key historical sites, leaving communities and livelihoods in jeopardy. Among the losses is the UNESCO World Heritage site once used to hold enslaved Africans during the transatlantic slave trade. Today, only remnants of the fort remain, with 90% of its structure swallowed by the ocean. “In 1907, the erosion started,” recalls James Ocloo Akorli, a historian and caretaker of the fort's remains. “First, it was the coconut trees. Then, the houses went. By 1980, when it was still being used as a prison, the damage was already severe.” The fate of Fort Kongestein in Ada Foah, built in 1783 and integral to the European slave trade, echoes this story. It has been ...

Dec232023 by Editor Desk1 Comment

World’s Largest Iceberg A23a Begins Drifting After 40 Years Grounded

Climate Actions, Disasters

In a significant development, the world’s largest iceberg, A23a, has finally broken free from its grounded position, initiating its drift in the Weddell Sea. Originating from West Antarctica’s Fichner-Ronne ice shelf, A23a measures a staggering 4000 sq km (1,500 square miles) with a thickness of about 400 meters (1,300 feet), making it the largest iceberg globally. After being grounded for an extended period since 1986, recent observations by the Copernicus Sentinel-1 satellite confirm its movement, estimated at approximately 4.8 km (3 miles) per day, propelled by winds and currents. Iceberg A23a Animation The colossal iceberg’s journey was tracked through an animation provided by the European Space Agency (ESA), showcasing its shifts on November 2, November 14, and November 26, 2023...

Dec222023 by disastersNo Comments

Octopus DNA Reveals Evidence of West Antarctic Ice Sheet Collapse During Last Warm Spell

Breaking News, Environment

In a groundbreaking study published in Science, scientists have turned to the DNA of octopuses living in Antarctica’s frigid waters to uncover evidence of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet’s (WAIS) collapse during the Last Interglacial, a warm period 129,000 to 116,000 years ago. Lead author Sally Lau from James Cook University and her team analyzed the genes of geographically-isolated populations of Turquet’s octopus, discovering genetic mixing that indicated the existence of trans-West Antarctic seaways connecting the Weddell, Amundsen, and Ross seas. The findings suggest that WAIS collapsed during the Last Interglacial when global temperatures were approximately 1.5 degrees Celsius warmer than pre-industrial levels, reflecting current conditions due to human-induced climate change. The st...

Dec222023 by disastersNo Comments

Australia’s Submerged Ancient Landscapes Revealed: Northwest Shelf’s Hidden History

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Learning & Developments

Recent research published in Quaternary Science Reviews unveils the hidden history of Australia’s Northwest Shelf, which was once an expansive, habitable landscape connecting the Kimberley and western Arnhem Land. This submerged continental shelf, stretching nearly 390,000 square kilometers, formed a unique cultural zone during a significant part of Australia’s human history, around 18,000 years ago. As the last ice age concluded, rising sea levels submerged this vast area, creating a complex landscape that remained undiscovered until now. The study used high-resolution maps and projections of past sea levels to reveal an archipelago, lakes, rivers, and a large inland sea that existed on the Northwest Shelf. This region, previously thought to be environmentally unproductive, turns ou...