Recent studies show South Africa is rising up to two millimetres per year, challenging previous understanding that this uplift was due to geological processes. Researchers from the University of Bonn have linked this phenomenon to severe water shortages, suggesting that loss of groundwater and surface water contributes significantly to land uplift. Analysis using the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) data indicates that areas experiencing droughts correlate with increased elevation, shifting the perspective on climatic impacts on geological formations.
Thanks to South Africa's network of GPS receivers, known as the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), scientists have known for some time that the country is rising.
‘This data showed an average rise of six millimetres between 2012 and 2020. We believe that it [is] also possible that a loss of groundwater and surface water is responsible for the land uplift.’
By comparing the GNSS data with factors like precipitation rates across the country, they found a clear parallel in the data.
Although the Earth might seem solid from our perspective, on the planetary scale it behaves much more like a rubber ball.
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