Possibly a cool tool in the right hands. But whatever they do with it, I'm sure the important lessons will be glossed over by our beloved bungling FEMA bureaucrats.SAN FRANCISCO, California (Reuters) -- More than 1 billion people live in low-lying areas where a sudden surge in sea level could prove as disastrous as the 2004 Asian tsunami, according to new research presented on Thursday.
And it could happen to all of them at the same time, too!
New mapping techniques show how much land would be lost and how many people affected by rapid sea level rises that are often triggered by storms and earthquakes, a U.S. Geological Survey-led team determined.
New techniques? What, did someone invent something that would give you your altitude or something?
E. Lynn Usery, who led the team, said nearly one-quarter of the world's population lives below 100 feet above sea level -- the size of the biggest surge during the 2004 tsunami that pulverized villages along the Indian Ocean and killed 230,000 people.
Wave height or surge height?
"What we are suggesting is what kind of areas are at risk (in) a catastrophic event," Usery told a meeting of the Association of American Geographers.
Really? Does it explain how badly modern-day relief operations will be bungled given all our cool high-tech stuff compared to the awesome response in the 30's where all they had was brains and the will to truly help their fellow man?
"The fact that there are that many people living at that sea level means there are probably a lot of people potentially in harm's way."
Interesting theory. I'll have to go get myself tons of grant money to research it.
The team also found that a 100-foot rise in sea level would cover 3.7 million square miles of land worldwide.
Err, anybody know where this water would come from anyway?
A rise of just 16 feet would affect 669 million people and 2 million square miles of land would be lost.
And a rise of 20,000 feet would wipe out just about everything!
Sea levels are currently rising about 0.04 to 0.08 inches each year, making it unlikely such a scenario would suddenly occur across the globe, Usery said.
Unlikely? But it could still happen, right?
But he said 10,000 years ago sea levels rose 20 meters in 500 years -- a relatively short span -- after the collapse of the continental ice sheets.
Ma, have you seen my runnin' shoes anywhere?
"It can happen in a short period of time if we look at the historical data," Usery said.
Geologically speaking, that is.
More importantly, he said, the new mapping technique provides detail that was previously unavailable and gives policymakers better tools to prepare for potential disasters. With just a mouse click on the computer, researchers can gauge how much land would be lost at various sea levels, and where.
They've been playing with it for hours now! It's really addictive!
The team developed its own mapping projection software and then plugged in U.S. Geological Survey data on population, elevation and different types of land cover.
Does it include data on population density of liberals as a function of elevation?
"This can be used by nations in the world to put contingency plans in place," Usery said. "We haven't had data sets at this kind of resolution before."
Look! A sudden 10 meter surge with infinite capacity would wipe out 1/3 of the terrorist population and 32.4% of moonbats!
The impetus for the project came after the 2004 tsunami and Hurricane Katrina in 2005 underlined the devastating impact sudden sea level surges can have on those living in coastal areas, Usery said.
Is anybody using the Homer "Doh!" graphic right now?
Even though people know low-lying areas like the Netherlands or many parts of Asia are at risk of flooding, many do not realize just how big a risk they are facing.
We're due for our 10,000 year surge any day now!
"A 30-meter surge in Florida would leave the whole state covered except for a little plateau area," Usery said.
Joe, could you comment on this scenario?
| You're a glutton for punishment, you are. |