Waves are getting bigger and surf at least 13 feet tall is becoming more common off California's coast as the planet warms, according to new research that tracked the increasing height from historical data gathered over the past 90 years.
SAN DIEGO — Waves are getting bigger and surf at least 13 feet tall is becoming more common off California's coast as the planet warms, according to innovative new research that tracked the increasing height from historical data gathered over the past 90 years.
Until now, scientists relied on a network of buoys by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that collect data on wave height along U.S. coasts, but that data along the California coast only went back to 1980. They found that average winter wave heights have grown by as much as a foot since 1970, when global warming is believed to have begun accelerating. Swells at least 13 feet tall are also happening a lot more often, occurring at least twice as often between 1996 to 2016 than from 1949 to 1969.
The study, published Tuesday in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, adds to the evidence that climate change is causing massive shifts in the world's oceans. Other studies have shown waves are not only getting taller but also more powerful. Bromirski said that is a harbinger of the future. Scientists say global warming may even be accelerating, ushering in even bigger waves.
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