A new analysis by the IAEA shows that global sea levels are rising faster and by a larger amount than expected through 2024, largely due to warmer water temperatures.
The study found that data shows that sea levels rose at a rate of .23 inches last year, faster than the expected .17 inches.
"Every year is a little different from the last, but what is clear is that the sea continues to rise and the rate of rise is accelerating," Josh Willis, a sea level researcher at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, said in a news release.
The study states that about two-thirds of the historical rise in sea level is the result of the melting of ice sheets and glaciers, as well as the increase in water flowing from the land into the oceans, while the third reason is thermal expansion.
NASA said that the increase in Earth's temperature is mainly due to the accumulation of heat-absorbing greenhouse gases, and 90 percent of this absorbed heat is absorbed by the oceans. When this heat is absorbed, the ocean temperature rises and the water expands.
