---
title: Global Climate Change Effects: Iceland Land Levels Rising
description: Land in Iceland is rising at a pace of as much as 1.4 inches per year as a result of climate change, according to a new study.
canonical: https://time.com/3691920/climate-change-iceland/
author: Justin Worland
article:opinion: false
article:content_tier: free
article:published_time: 2015-02-02T12:47:29.000Z
article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:40:46.848Z
article:section: Science
og:title: Climate Change Is Making the Land in Iceland Rise
og:description: Study is the first to demonstrate the link between climate change and rising land
og:url: https://time.com/3691920/climate-change-iceland/
og:site_name: TIME
og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltaea5f16f3ba9d376/69877d2006f2c15ac9333c1d/iceland-blue-lagoon.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9
og:image:width: 1200
og:image:height: 675
og:image:alt: Blue Lagoon Iceland
og:type: article
twitter:card: summary_large_image
twitter:title: Climate Change Is Making the Land in Iceland Rise
twitter:description: Study is the first to demonstrate the link between climate change and rising land
twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltaea5f16f3ba9d376/69877d2006f2c15ac9333c1d/iceland-blue-lagoon.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9
---
# Climate Change Is Making the Land in Iceland Rise
## Video: Know Right Now: Greenland's Vanishing Lakes
[Watch (HLS stream): Know Right Now: Greenland's Vanishing Lakes](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/c5XmFHOu.m3u8) (1:03)
_Published 2015-01-22. Two lakes in Greenland holding enormous amounts of water have drained within weeks, researchers say_
by
[Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)
## Justin Worland
Senior Correspondent
Feb 2, 2015 12:47 PM UTC
Blue Lagoon, Iceland
Blue Lagoon, IcelandGetty Images
by
[Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)
## Justin Worland
Senior Correspondent
Feb 2, 2015 12:47 PM UTC
Land in Iceland is rising at a pace of as much as 1.4 inches per year in certain areas as a result of climate change, according to a new [study](http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/2014GL062446/abstract). The melting of the country’s glaciers reduces pressure on the land below and allows the surface to rise, researchers say.
“Our research makes the connection between recent accelerated uplift and the accelerated melting of the Icelandic ice caps,” study co-author Kathleen Compton, a University of Arizona researcher, said in a statement.
The study, published in the journal _Geophysical Research Letters_, relied on data from 62 global positioning system receivers placed throughout Iceland that allowed researchers to track the land’s movement.
**MORE:** [The Senate Discovers Climate Change!](http://time.com/3680447/senate-climate-change/)
While scientists have noticed the rise in land levels in certain areas across the globe, this study is the first to demonstrate the link between climate change and rising land, the researchers say.
“Iceland is the first place we can say accelerated uplift means accelerated ice mass loss,” said study co-author Richard Bennett, a professor at the University of Arizona.
### Melting Away: One Photographer's Journey to Preserve the Polar Regions
Evigheds Fjord, Eternity GlacierWestern Greenland, September 2009 Camille Seaman
Iceberg Detail with Kittiwake Gulls Eastern Greenland, August 2006 Camille Seaman
Trapped IcebergEastern Greenland, August 2006 Camille Seaman
Grand Pinnacle Iceberg DetailEastern Greenland, August 2006 Camille Seaman
Breaching IcebergGreenland, August 2008 Camille Seaman
The Kings of South GeorgiaSouth Georgia, March 2010 Camille Seaman
Tabular Iceberg ReflectedCape Adare, Antarctica, December 2006 Camille Seaman
On the EdgeSvalbard, June 2010 Camille Seaman
Sea Ice Remnant Svalbard, July 2008 Camille Seaman
Antarctic Storm Antarctic Peninsula, December 2008 Camille Seaman
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