Causes of sea-level rise

Thermal expansion is the biggest single cause of sea-level rise as a consequence of climate change, but ice loss from the continental glaciers and from the polar ice sheets is also one of the most critical drivers of our rising seas. Ice loss from glaciers, Greenland and Antarctica accounts for about 45% of sea-level rise. Another cause is discharge from waterbodies on land, but how much this contributes to sea-level rise is more uncertain.