There could be a rise in global sea levels by over three metres: Experts

New Delhi: As per a new study, global sea levels could rise by over three metres - half a metre more than previously thought - this century alone.

An international team, including researchers from University of Southampton in the UK, looked at what might happen if carbon dioxide emissions continue unabated.

Using new projections of Antarctic mass loss and a revised statistical method, they concluded that a worst-case scenario of a 2.5 to three-metre sea level rise was possible by 2100.

"It might be an unlikely scenario, but we cannot exclude the possibility of global sea levels rising by more than three metres by the year 2100," said Professor Sybren Drijfhout from Southampton.

"Unabated global warming will lead to sea-level rise of many metres - possibly more than ten metres - within a few centuries, seriously threatening many cities all over the world that are built in low-lying river deltas," said Drijfhout.

The research is consistent with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) recent adjustment of its possible future high-end sea-level rise from two to 2.5 metres.

However, the new study published in the journal Environmental Research Letters, integrated different model estimates with a new statistical method, whereas the NOAA estimate relied on expert judgement.

(With IANS inputs)