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50-year Trend in Atlantic Hurricane Escalation

Climate Change

As the global climate heats up and sea levels rise, an epic battle takes shape in our coastal watersheds, where incremental changes have enormous impacts.

What does research reveal? What does climate change mean for our state?

mountains and a glacier

Mar 27, 2024

Ice to Ocean

As glaciers melt and seas rise, new findings about ground elevations at the coast confirm that the battle between land and sea has become increasingly one-sided — and that an ecological transformation of coastal NC has begun.
image: factory smokestacks release smoke into the air during sunset.

Mar 25, 2024

Vital Signs: Greenhouse Gas Emissions Hit Highest Levels

50 Leading Scientists on “Unprecedented” Human-Caused Global Warming
image: flooded residential street at sunset.

Mar 25, 2024

Sunny with a Chance of Floods

When people see photos of Carolina Beach’s flooded Canal Drive, they might assume those waters lapping against the doorways of a residential neighborhood mean the area had just experienced a severe storm or hurricane. Locals know, however, it is just as likely the deluge was not related to a storm at all but rather an example of “nuisance” flooding.

Jun 24, 2024

Climate Change, Summertime, and Your Health

Global warming impacts human health. Share these resources and help spread awareness.

Jul 2, 2024

The NC Coastal Conference Returns to the Coast

The North Carolina Coastal Conference returns to the coast on November 13 and 14 at the Riverfront Convention Center in New Bern.

Jun 29, 2024

NC’s True Ghost Story

North Carolina hosts a variety of ghost stories, from Blackbeard’s spirit searching for his severed head along the Outer Banks to UNC-Chapel Hill’s Horace Williams returning to campus from beyond the grave to haunt Caldwell Hall. Although the veracity of these accounts is dubious, there is more than enough evidence to support one particular North Carolina ghost story: the eerie remains of once-flourishing forests along the Atlantic Coast.

Jun 26, 2024

Vital Signs: Caribbean Creep

“Fouling” species — such as sea squirts, bivalves, barnacles, and seaweeds — can create substantial communities that cover docks, piers, and boat bottoms.
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Jan 17, 2024

Shifting Shores

Coastal hazards, such as hurricanes and sea level rise, continue to increase with climate change -- and shoreline modifications, dredging, and boating wakes can exacerbate erosion and property damage.
Cedar Point Tideland

Jan 17, 2024

Degrees of Change: Why Water Temperatures Matter

Estuaries are transition zones where land meets water, ocean meets rivers, and saltwater meets fresh. Climate change and shifting water temperatures are among the most pressing considerations for ecosystem resiliency, and estuaries are no exception.

image: Hurricane Florence from space.

Jan 9, 2024

50-year Trend in Atlantic Hurricane Escalation

New research from Rowan University climate scientist Andra Garner shows changes to Atlantic hurricanes over the past 50 years, with storms developing and strengthening faster.