NASA: Moon’s orbital wobble could cause record floods on Earth

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Every coast in the United States is facing rapidly increasing flooding. NASA says this is due to a “wobbles” in the moon’s orbit that works in tandem with rising sea levels caused by climate change.

The new study by NASA and the University of Hawaii, recently published in Nature Climate Change, warns that upcoming changes in the Moon’s orbit could trigger record floods on Earth in the next decade.

By mapping NOAA scenarios of sea-level rise, flood thresholds and astronomical cycles, researchers have found that flooding in US coastal cities could be many times worse in the 1930s, when the next moon is expected to begin. vibrate”. They expect the flood to cause significant damage to infrastructure and displacement of communities.

While the study highlights the dire situation that coastal cities face, the oscillation of the moon is actually a natural occurrence, first reported in 1728. The orbit of the moon is responsible for high and low tides every 18.6 years, which is not dangerous in their own right.

NASA explains: “In half of the 18.6-year lunar cycle, the Earth’s regular daily tides are suppressed: high tides are below normal and low tides are above normal.” “The other half of the cycle, the tides are amplified: high tides, low tides. The effect of sea level rise on the tides, and the other half amplifying the effect.”

But this time, the scientists are more concerned. As sea levels rise due to climate change, the next high tidal floods are expected to be more intense and frequent than ever before, exacerbating the already grim forecast.

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The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reported more than 600 such floods in 2019. Scientists expect three to four times that amount in the mid-2030s, after sea-level rise has another decade of progress.

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According to the study, these floods will often exceed flood thresholds across the country, and can also occur in clusters lasting more than a month, depending on the positions of the Moon, Earth, and Sun. During a particular alignment, floods can occur as frequently as every day or every other day.

“Low areas near sea level are increasingly vulnerable and suffering from increased flooding, and will only get worse,” said Bill Nelson, NASA Administrator. “The combination of the moon’s gravity, rising sea levels, and climate change will continue to exacerbate coastal flooding on our coasts and around the world.”

Almost all coasts of the mainland United States, Hawaii and Guam are expected to experience these effects. Sea-level rise is already expected to make hundreds of thousands of square miles of coastline uninhabitable and potentially displace more than 100 million people worldwide by the end of the century.

The researchers hope that their findings will lead to more efforts dedicated to preventing as much harm as possible, both to the environment and people’s livelihoods, before it is too late. While tidal floods do not involve as much water as hurricanes, the real danger lies in their frequency.

“The cumulative effect over time will have an effect,” said lead author Phil Thompson. “If it gets flooded 10 or 15 times a month, a company can’t continue to operate with an underwater parking lot. People lose their jobs because they can’t work. Septic tanks become a public health problem.”

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