Marine and Coastal Regions and Sea Level Rise

An analysis of coastal wetlands loss from sea level rise due to climate change, conducted by SEDAC for the Ramsar Convention's Scientific and Technical Review Panel, provides estimates of wetland losses as a basis for identifying potential adaptation measures. The Ramsar Wetlands of International Importance: Sea Level Rise Impacts data and related map client make use of NASA’s Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) elevation data, SEDAC’s Global Rural-Urban Mapping Project version 1 (GRUMPv1) population density grid for the year 2000 (and a 2010 projection), the GRUMPv1 urban extents grid, and an updated version of SEDAC’s Global Subnational Infant Mortality Rates, v1 data.

A map of Burma, based on the SEDAC Gridded Population of the World (GPW) data product, reveals that coastal areas hit hardest by the cyclone in May 2008 were highly populated. (Areas in progressively darker shades of brown represent increased population.)

Sensing Our Planet: NASA Earth Science Research Features 2008 features an article on how SEDAC data was used for the 2008 Environmental Performance Index and other environmental assessments; CIESIN’s Marc Levy is interviewed.

A CNN video newscast refers to a map of the path of Cyclone Nargis and the populations affected, in the worst natural disaster in the recorded history of Burma (Myanmar).