'Wobble' in Moon's Orbit Could
Cause Record Flooding in the 2030s, NASA Study Finds.
'Wobble' in Moon's Orbit Could
Cause Record Flooding in the 2030s, NASA Study Finds.
The NASA study is a warning that
"nuisance floods" could become frequent
fixtures across U.S. coastlines in the next decade.
Nuisance floods occur on coastlines when
high tide levels exceed two feet above the norm,
causing significant local flooding.
In 2019, close to 600 of these
types of floods occurred in the U.S.
But the new NASA-led study predicts an
increased frequency of nuisance floods of
between three to four times that number.
According to the study,
this is likely to begin as soon as the 2030s.
The increase will be due to several factors,
including the rise in sea levels due to
human-influenced climate change.
as well as a particular cycle of the
moon's 18.6-year orbit around the Earth that
causes higher tides across the board.
[High-tide flooding will move] from a regional issue to a national issue with a majority of U.S. coastlines
being affected, NASA-led Study Authors, via Live Science.
If it floods 10 or 15 times a month, a business can't keep operating with its parking lot under water. , Phil Thompson, Assistant Professor University
of Hawaii, via Live Science.
People lose their jobs because they can't get to work. Seeping cesspools become a public health issue, Phil Thompson, Assistant Professor University
of Hawaii, via Live Science.
The authors of the study recommend that
planning measures begin now in order to mitigate the
worst effects of the increase in nuisance floods