Figure A2.2: Annual fluctuations and the 20-year moving-average (thick red line) for mean-annual sea level from the Port of Auckland, compared with the positive and negative cycles of the IPO
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[Note: the overall linear trend in historic sea-level rise is +0.16 m/century.]
Text description of figure
The influence of the Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation (IPO) can be seen by plotting mean-annual sea-level at Port of Auckland from 1899 to 2001.
Over that time sea level has trended upwards, at a rate of 0.16 metres per century. Superimposed on this trend is a fluctuation of plus or minus 0.05 metres with a period lasting decades and coinciding with positive and negative cycles of the IPO. Higher sea levels are generally recorded during negative phases of the IPO. Individual year-to-year variations are up to 0.1m.
