NASA has revealed that global sea levels have risen faster than anticipated in 2024. The US space agency reported that the rate of sea level rise last year reached 0.59 centimeters per year, surpassing the expected 0.43 centimeters. This acceleration is primarily due to the warming of ocean water, which causes it to expand, along with additional meltwater from glaciers and ice sheets.

 

Josh Willis, a sea level researcher at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, stated that while annual fluctuations occur, the trend is clear: the oceans are rising, and the rate is speeding up. In 2024, thermal expansion contributed to two-thirds of the sea level rise, a shift from the previous years, when melting ice had been the dominant factor.

 

NASA also highlighted that 2024 marked the warmest year on record, with Earth’s oceans reaching their highest levels in three decades. Since satellite measurements began in 1993, global sea levels have risen by 10 centimeters, and the rate of rise has more than doubled.