Page 82 - Frontier Technologies to Protect the Environment and Tackle Climate Change
P. 82
Frontier Technologies to Protect the Environment and Tackle Climate Change
Figure 30: NASA's illustration of ICESat-2's function [xxx]
Scientists hope that data from next-generation satellites will help improve uncertain forecasts for sea-level
rise, as well as predict and help them understand global weather and climate patterns better. According
to the IPCC, higher seas are already creating more dangerous storm surges, exacerbating flooding or
coastal erosion from the US Gulf Coast to the Maldives to China. Some low-lying island nations, such as
Fiji and Vanuatu, have already been forced to move certain coastal communities to higher ground. The
future effect on communities in Greenland itself is uncertain, and, hence, of major concern. 240,241 The
role of space technologies for monitoring, therefore, is becoming increasingly important.
76
