The sea-level budget: an assessmentof observations at the Norwegian coast

Abstract

Sea level is a major indicator of climate change and thus a key essential climate variable. The source of recent sea-level rise can be understood by measuring the ocean’s temperature, salinity, mass, and sea-surface height. Based on those observations, sea-level change is determined in terms of total sea level and its two major contributions, ocean-mass and steric (density-related) sea level. The sea-level budget is closed when the sum of the independent contributions agrees with the measurements of total sea level, indicating that the observations can be used to understand recent and predict future sea-level change.