Like a Big Ice Cube in a Drink
Imagine you have a big glass of water, and you put a huge ice cube inside it. When the ice melts, the water level goes up, just like that. The Earth has a lot of ice on top of the oceans, like Antarctica and Greenland. As the planet gets warmer, this ice starts to melt and flows into the ocean, making the water rise.
The Ocean Gets Bigger
Also, when water warms up, it expands, just like when you heat up a soda can, it gets bigger. So the ocean is not only getting more water from melting ice but also getting warmer and taking up more space.
What Happens if It Rises Three Feet?
That’s about as tall as a small kid! If the ocean goes up that much, parts of cities near the coast might get flooded. It's like when you spill water on the floor, everything gets wet. Some places could even become underwater, just like how your toys would be underwater if you put them in the bathtub and turned on the tap too high.
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See also
- What Causes a Volcano to Erupt?
- How Does a Battery Work?
- What Causes the Tides Exactly?
- How To Use An Abacus?
- Why Do We Have Different Seasons?