Surface water shifting around the Earth
▻http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/amp/37187100
Scientists have used satellite images to study how the water on the Earth’s surface has changed over 30 years.
They found that 115,000 sq km (44,000 sq miles) of land is now covered in water and 173,000 sq km (67,000 sq miles) of water has now become land.
The largest increase in water has been on the Tibetan Plateau, while the Aral Sea has been the biggest conversion of water to land.
[...] Coastal areas were also analysed, and to the scientists surprise, coastlines had gained more land - 33,700 sq km (13,000 sq miles) - than they had been lost to water (20,100 sq km or 7,800 sq miles).
“We expected that the coast would start to retreat due to sea level rise, but the most surprising thing is that the coasts are growing all over the world,” said Dr Baart.
#eau #océans #barrages #climat
Areas in green show where water has turned into land and those in blue show where land has become water