scholarly journals Linear and non-linear sea-level variations in the Adriatic Sea from tide gauge records (1872-2012)

2015 ◽  
Vol 57 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gaia Galassi ◽  
Giorgio Spada

<p>We have analyzed tide gauge data from the Adriatic Sea in order to assess the secular sea-level trend, its acceleration and the existence of possible cyclic variation. Analyzing the sea-level stack of all Adriatic tide gauges, we have obtained a trend of (1.25±0.04) mm yr<sup>-1</sup>, in agreement with that observed for the last century in the Mediterranean Sea, and an acceleration that is negligibile compared to the average global values. By means of the Ensemble Empirical Mode Decomposition technique, we have evidenced an energetic oscillation with a period of <span>∼</span>20 years that we relate with the recurrence of opposite phases in the Atlantic Multi–decadal Oscillation and North Atlantic Oscillation indices. We suggest that anomalously high sea-level values observed at all the Adriatic tide gauges during 2010 and 2011 can be explained by the rising phase of this 20 years cycle.</p>

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suresh Palanisamy Vadivel ◽  
Duk-jin Kim ◽  
Jungkyo Jung ◽  
Yang-Ki Cho ◽  
Ki-Jong Han ◽  
...  

Vertical land motion at tide gauges influences sea level rise acceleration; this must be addressed for interpreting reliable sea level projections. In recent years, tide gauge records for the Eastern coast of Korea have revealed rapid increases in sea level rise compared with the global mean. Pohang Tide Gauge Station has shown a +3.1 cm/year sea level rise since 2013. This study aims to estimate the vertical land motion that influences relative sea level rise observations at Pohang by applying a multi-track Persistent Scatter Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (PS-InSAR) time-series analysis to Sentinel-1 SAR data acquired during 2015–2017. The results, which were obtained at a high spatial resolution (10 m), indicate vertical ground motion of −2.55 cm/year at the Pohang Tide Gauge Station; this was validated by data from a collocated global positioning system (GPS) station. The subtraction of InSAR-derived subsidence rates from sea level rise at the Pohang Tide Gauge Station is 6 mm/year; thus, vertical land motion significantly dominates the sea level acceleration. Natural hazards related to the sea level rise are primarily assessed by relative sea level changes obtained from tide gauges; therefore, tide gauge records should be reviewed for rapid vertical land motion along the vulnerable coastal areas.


Ocean Science ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 617-628 ◽  
Author(s):  
Q. H. Luu ◽  
P. Tkalich ◽  
T. W. Tay

Abstract. Sea level rise due to climate change is non-uniform globally, necessitating regional estimates. Peninsular Malaysia is located in the middle of Southeast Asia, bounded from the west by the Malacca Strait, from the east by the South China Sea (SCS), and from the south by the Singapore Strait. The sea level along the peninsula may be influenced by various regional phenomena native to the adjacent parts of the Indian and Pacific oceans. To examine the variability and trend of sea level around the peninsula, tide gauge records and satellite altimetry are analyzed taking into account vertical land movements (VLMs). At annual scale, sea level anomalies (SLAs) around Peninsular Malaysia on the order of 5–25 cm are mainly monsoon driven. Sea levels at eastern and western coasts respond differently to the Asian monsoon: two peaks per year in the Malacca Strait due to South Asian–Indian monsoon; an annual cycle in the remaining region mostly due to the East Asian–western Pacific monsoon. At interannual scale, regional sea level variability in the range of ±6 cm is correlated with El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO). SLAs in the Malacca Strait side are further correlated with the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) in the range of ±5 cm. Interannual regional sea level falls are associated with El Niño events and positive phases of IOD, whilst rises are correlated with La Niña episodes and negative values of the IOD index. At seasonal to interannual scales, we observe the separation of the sea level patterns in the Singapore Strait, between the Raffles Lighthouse and Tanjong Pagar tide stations, likely caused by a dynamic constriction in the narrowest part. During the observation period 1986–2013, average relative rates of sea level rise derived from tide gauges in Malacca Strait and along the east coast of the peninsula are 3.6±1.6 and 3.7±1.1 mm yr−1, respectively. Correcting for respective VLMs (0.8±2.6 and 0.9±2.2 mm yr−1), their corresponding geocentric sea level rise rates are estimated at 4.4±3.1 and 4.6±2.5 mm yr−1. The geocentric rates are about 25 % faster than those measured at tide gauges around the peninsula; however, the level of uncertainty associated with VLM data is relatively high. For the common period between 1993 and 2009, geocentric sea level rise values along the Malaysian coast are similar from tide gauge records and satellite altimetry (3.1 and 2.7 mm yr−1, respectively), and arguably correspond to the global trend.


Eos ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leah Crane

Tide gauges can help measure sea level change, but their limited locations and short records make it hard to pinpoint trends. Now researchers are evaluating the instruments' limitations.


2009 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 1109-1132 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Llovel ◽  
A. Cazenave ◽  
P. Rogel ◽  
A. Lombard ◽  
M. Bergé-Nguyen

Abstract. A two-dimensional reconstruction of past sea level is proposed at yearly interval over the period 1950–2003 using tide gauge records at 99 selected sites and 44-year long (1960–2003) 2°×2° gridded dynamic heights from the OPA/NEMO global ocean circulation model with data assimilation. An Empirical Orthogonal Function decomposition of the reconstructed sea level over 1950–2003 displays leading modes that reflect two main components: a long-term (multi-decadal) but regionally variable signal and interannual fluctuations dominated by the signature of El Nino-Southern Oscillation. Tests show that spatial trend patterns of the 54-year long reconstructed sea level (1950–2003) significantly depend on the length of the gridded OPA/NEMO time series used to compute spatial covariance signal used for the reconstruction (i.e., the length of the gridded OPA/NEMO time series). On the other hand, the interannual variability is well reconstructed, even with ~10-year long of the OPA/NEMO model or satellite altimetry-based sea level grids. The robustness of the results is assessed, leaving out successively each of the 99 tide gauges when reconstructing the sea level signal and then comparing observed and reconstructed time series at the non contributing tide gauge site. The reconstruction performs well at most tide gauges, especially at interannual frequency.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 361-378
Author(s):  
V. B. Mendes ◽  
S. M. Barbosa ◽  
D. Carinhas

AbstractIn this study, we estimate vertical land motion for 35 stations primarily located along the coastline of Portugal and Spain, using GPS time series with at least eight years of observations. Based on this set of GPS stations, our results show that vertical land motion along the Iberian coastline is characterized, in general, by a low to moderate subsidence, ranging from −2.2 mm yr−1 to 0.4 mm yr−1, partially explained by the glacial isostatic adjustment geophysical signal. The estimates of vertical land motion are subsequently applied in the analysis of tide gauge records and compared with geocentric estimates of sea level change. Geocentric sea level for the Iberian Atlantic coast determined from satellite altimetry for the last three decades has a mean of 2.5 ± 0.6 mm yr−1, with a significant range, as seen for a subset of grid points located in the vicinity of tide gauge stations, which present trends varying from 1.5 mm yr−1 to 3.2 mm yr−1. Relative sea level determined from tide gauges for this region shows a high degree of spatial variability, that can be partially explained not only by the difference in length and quality of the time series, but also for possible undocumented datum shifts, turning some trends unreliable. In general, tide gauges corrected for vertical land motion produce smaller trends than satellite altimetry. Tide gauge trends for the last three decades not corrected for vertical land motion range from 0.3 mm yr−1 to 5.0 mm yr−1 with a mean of 2.6 ± 1.4 mm yr−1, similar to that obtained from satellite altimetry. When corrected for vertical land motion, we observe a reduction of the mean to ∼1.9 ± 1.4 mm yr−1. Actions to improve our knowledge of vertical land motion using space geodesy, such as establishing stations in co-location with tide gauges, will contribute to better evaluate sea level change and its impacts on coastal regions.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (9) ◽  
pp. 924
Author(s):  
Bernardino J. Nhantumbo ◽  
Björn C. Backeberg ◽  
Jan Even Øie Nilsen ◽  
Chris J. C. Reason

Atmospheric forcing and climate modes of variability on various timescales are important drivers of sea level variability. However, the influence of such drivers on sea level variability along the South African east and south coast has not yet been adequately investigated. Here, we determine the timescales of sea level variability and their relationships with various drivers. Empirical Mode Decomposition (EMD) was applied to seven tide gauge records and potential forcing data for this purpose. The oscillatory modes identified by the EMD were summed to obtain physically more meaningful timescales—specifically, the sub-annual (less than 18 months) and interannual (greater than two years) scales. On the sub-annual scale, sea level responds to regional zonal and meridional winds associated with mesoscale and synoptic weather disturbances. Ekman dynamics resulting from variability in sea level pressure and alongshore winds are important for the coastal sea level on this timescale. On interannual timescales, there were connections with ENSO, the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) and the Southern Annular Mode (SAM), although the results are not consistent across all the tide gauge stations and are not particularly strong. In general, El Niño and positive IOD events are coincident with high coastal sea levels and vice versa, whereas there appears to be an inverse relationship between SAM phase and sea level.


2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Albert Parker

AbstractThe tide gauges measure the local oscillations of the sea level vs. the tide gauge instrument. The tide gauge instrument is generally subjected to the general subsidence or uplift of the nearby inland, plus some additional subsidence for land compaction and other localised phenomena. The paper proposes a non-linear model of the relative sea level oscillations including a long term trend for the absolute sea level rise, another term for the subsidence of the instrument, and finally a sinusoidal approximation for the cyclic oscillations of periodicities up to decades. This non-linear model is applied to the tide gauges of China. The paper shows that the limited information available for China does not permit to infer any proper trend for the relative rates of rise, as the tide gauge records are all short or incomplete and the vertical movement of the tide gauge instruments is unassessed. The only tide gauge record of sufficient length that may be assembled for China is obtained by combining the North Point and Quarry Bay tide gauges in Hong Kong (NPQB). This NQPB composite tide gauge record is shown to have similarities with the tide gauge records of Sydney, equally in the West pacific, and San Diego, in the east Pacific, oscillating about the longer term trend mostly determined by the local subsidence. As it is very well known that China generally suffers of land subsidence, and the tide gauge installations may suffer of additional subsidence vs. the inland, it may be concluded from the analysis of the other worldwide tide gauges that the sea levels of China are very likely rising about the same amount of the subsidence of the tide gauges, with the sea level acceleration component still negligible.


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