IMPORTANT: Google Earth for web is no longer available embedded within this page.
However, you can open the Extreme scenario sea level layer within the Google Earth web site.
The instructions in the video above will work, but you must follow them after visiting Google Earth
for web in a separate window.
See the written instructions below (which are up to date) for detail.
Download the Extreme scenario file.
In a new browser window or tab, visit Google Earth web.
Keep these instructions open in this window and refer to them as you configure Google Earth in the 2nd window.
In the Google Earth window you opened, open the “My Places” tab from the menu bar on the left. (It’s the second icon from the bottom).
In the Google Earth window you opened, open the link in “Enable KML import in Settings” at the bottom of the My Places frame.
At the bottom of the Settings popup, activate the slider by “Enable KML file import”, and hit “SAVE”.
Still on the “My Places” frame, choose “IMPORT KML FILE” and open the Extreme scenario KML file you’ve downloaded.
It may take a few seconds or even a minute for Google Earth to load the KML file.
From the Google Earth menu bar, open the search frame. Search for your favorite U.S. coastal city.
Google Earth may not have 3D building data available in some areas. The Extreme scenario KML layer is only available for places in the U.S.
Zoom in close to an area of interest. Use the 3D button in the Google Earth controls (lower-right corner) or hold Shift, then click and drag to
change the map perspective. For performance reasons, the sea level layer will only appear when viewing
areas covering about 3 miles or less. The flood plain is most accurate at very close zooms.This KML file
can also be opened in Google Earth Desktop for a full-featured experience.
This sea level rise KML overlay shows projected U.S. sea levels for the year 2100 under an “extreme” scenario published in NOAA
Technical Report NOS CO-OPS 083, Global and Regional SLR Scenarios for the U.S. (January 2017).
This scenario corresponds to rapid ice loss in West Antarctica this
century. Recent research finds that
such loss is plausible, but we do not yet know its likelihood. However, NOAA’s projections indicate that
deep cuts in heat-trapping pollution could lower the chances of this scenario occurring by half.
Different places have different projected sea levels due to local factors such as rising or sinking land.
This map shows the appropriate level in each location. Local sea level rise values are available via
Risk Finder: first search for the place you
want, then scroll down to the extreme scenario section. This map uses the median (middle) subscenario
of the extreme scenario in the NOAA report. It shows sea level increase relative to the local high tide
line (technically, the mean higher high water line, based on water level records from 1983-2001).
For information on why U.S. projections outside Alaska are so much higher than the global average of
8.25 feet, see this article.
For information on the most threatened U.S. cities and states, as well as to learn about the
methodology behind this map, see this report.
To explore this sea level projection in a 2D map in U.S. locations, navigate to this page.
Services
Climate Central offers coastal area flood and sea level risk assessment services in the U.S. and globally, including infrastructure and portfolio analytics, digital tool-building, and other tailored services and consulting for governments, NGOs, businesses and investors. Learn more.
Team
The Climate Central sea level rise group conceived
and maintains this tool. Please consider supporting our nonprofit efforts.
The purpose of our web tools is to provide local regions and policy makers with the tailored local information they need to understand and respond to the risks of sea level rise and coastal flooding. Our web tools are screening/scoping tools that use consistent data sets and analyses at the national level within the U.S., and a different consistent set across all other nations outside the U.S. For information visit Disclaimer | Terms of Use
IMPORTANT: Google Earth for web is no longer available embedded within this page.
However, you can open the Extreme scenario sea level layer within the Google Earth web site.
The instructions in the video above will work, but you must follow them after visiting Google Earth
for web in a separate window.
See the written instructions below (which are up to date) for detail.
from the menu bar on the left. (It’s the second icon from the bottom).
It may take a few seconds or even a minute for Google Earth to load the KML file.