AbstractThis study proposes a new paradigm for assessing
thermosteric effects of warming oceans at a tide gauge
station. For demonstration, the trend due to the global
thermosteric sea level at the Key West, FL tide gauge station
was estimated using the tide gauge measurements
and the global sea surface temperature anomalies that
were represented by yearly distributed lags. A comparison
of the estimate with the trend estimate from a descriptive
model revealed that 0.7±0.1 mm/yr, (p<0.01), of the total
trend 2.2±0.1 mm/yr (p<0.01) estimated using the descriptive
model can be attributed to the global warming of the
oceans during the last century at this station. The remaining
1.5±0.1 mm/yr, 70 percent of the total trend, is the lump
sum estimate of the secular changes due to the eustatic,
halosteric, and various local isostatic contributions.