Concepts and Terminology for Sea Level: Mean, Variability and Change, Both Local and Global

Publication date

2019-04

Authors

Gregory, Jonathan M.
Griffies, Stephen M.
Hughes, Chris W.
Lowe, Jason A.
Church, John A.
Fukimori, Ichiro
Gomez, Natalya
Kopp, Robert E.
Landerer, Felix
Cozannet, Gonéri Le

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Document Type

Article
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Abstract

Changes in sea level lead to some of the most severe impacts of anthropogenic climate change. Consequently, they are a subject of great interest in both scientific research and public policy. This paper defines concepts and terminology associated with sea level and sea-level changes in order to facilitate progress in sea-level science, in which communication is sometimes hindered by inconsistent and unclear language. We identify key terms and clarify their physical and mathematical meanings, make links between concepts and across disciplines, draw distinctions where there is ambiguity, and propose new terminology where it is lacking or where existing terminology is confusing. We include formulae and diagrams to support the definitions.

Keywords

Concepts, Sea level, Terminology, Geophysics, Geochemistry and Petrology, SDG 13 - Climate Action

Citation

Gregory, J M, Griffies, S M, Hughes, C W, Lowe, J A, Church, J A, Fukimori, I, Gomez, N, Kopp, R E, Landerer, F, Cozannet, G L, Ponte, R M, Stammer, D, Tamisiea, M E & van de Wal, R S W 2019, 'Concepts and Terminology for Sea Level : Mean, Variability and Change, Both Local and Global', Surveys in Geophysics. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10712-019-09525-z