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Land waters and sea level

Changes in continental water stores, largely human-induced, affect sea level. Better hydrological models and observations could clarify the land's role in sea-level variations.

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Figure 1: Accumulated global reservoir water storage 1900–2025.
Figure 2: GRACE equivalent water-depth anomalies (departures from time mean) over the global land area with the exception of Greenland and Antarctica.

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Correspondence to Dennis P. Lettenmaier.

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Lettenmaier, D., Milly, P. Land waters and sea level. Nature Geosci 2, 452–454 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo567

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