The study focused on a part of the Marshall Islands in the equatorial Pacific Ocean. That is the origin of more than a thousand other low-lying, ring-shaped atoll islands or atoll island chains across the Pacific and Indian oceans. Most are not populated, but some, such as the Marshall Islands and Maldives, are home to tens or even hundreds of thousands. A rise of five to six centimeters globally has already occurred since 2000, and the sea-level rise is even faster at the Kwajalein atoll. Droxler said the study reminded him of Maldives, where he has worked and which faces a situation similar to that of the Marshall Islands.

Source: Washington Post April 25, 2018 18:00 UTC