Why sea level rise varies from place to place
Multiple, overlapping factors can mean big differences in flood risk
![Maldives](https://i0.wp.com/www.sciencenews.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/080318_KD_sea-level-rise_feat-1.jpg?fit=860%2C460&ssl=1)
SLOWLY BUT SHORELY The Maldives (its capital, Malé, shown) has long been a poster child for vulnerability to rising seas, with more than 400,000 people living across low-lying atolls in the Indian Ocean. A 2017 study suggests that weakened monsoon winds have curtailed ocean circulation, leading to sea levels rising faster than the global average around the island nation.
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