Abstract:
Long term mean sea level change is a variable of considerable interest
in the studies of global climate change. The measurement of long term
change in global mean sea level would provide important corroboration
of predictions by climate models of global warming as a result of
an increase in the "greenhouse" gases. There are primarily two methods
of determining the
... long term sea level variations. Over the last century,
global sea level change has typically been estimated from tide gauge
measurements by long-term averaging. Most recent estimates of
global mean sea level rise from tide gauge measurements range
from 1.7 to 2.4 mm/yr. Alternatively, satellite altimeter measurements
can be combined with precisely known spacecraft orbits to provide an
improved measurement of global sea level change, especially over shorter
periods. Since August of 1992 the TOPEX/POSEIDON satellite
mission has been measuring sea level on a global basis every 10 days
with unprecedented accuracy and precision. 
