Under the sea: Incredible images show what America's most famous coastal landmarks would look like if sea levels rose by just 12 feet
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Scientists warn that vast glaciers in West Antarctica are locked in an irreversible thaw linked to global warming – and now incredible images show the effect the melt would have on some of the U.S's classic coastal city areas.
Experts say the melt could add 12 feet (1.2 to 3.7 meters) to current sea levels in a few hundred years and the images illustrate the impact this increase would have on cities including Miami, Boston and San Francisco.
The photographs were developed by Pittsburgh-based digital artist Nickolay Lamm, based on sea level-rise mapping data from Climate Central.
In the shocking pictures the Jefferson Memorial in Washington D.C is surrounded by water, Ocean Drive in Miami looks like it would only be navigable by boat and Crissy Field in San Francisco is mostly under water.
And you'd need waders to walk around The San Diego Convention Center, according to the predictions.
A Nasa study looking at 40 years of ground, airplane and satellite data shows the melt is happening faster than scientists had predicted, crossing a critical threshold that has begun a domino-like process.
Some scientists believe that a build-up of man-made greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is affecting wind patterns around Antarctica, driving warmer waters towards the continent.
Watery Boston: This image shows what the city's Back Bay would look like if sea levels rose by 12 feet, with roads leading to the bay completely submerged
Soggy playing conditions: AT&T Park in San Francisco would need to become a water polo venue, according to Nickolay Lamm's digital imaging
Flooded: The San Diego Convention Center would be completely unusable if sea levels rose by 12 feet, with water almost encroaching onto the road next to it
Venice Beach: Los Angeles' famous coastal hot-spot might only be navigable by canoe in the future, with the beach totally submerged by the waters of the Pacific
Road to nowhere: Miami's Ocean Drive is a popular spot for a stroll and a cruise, but in a few hundred years it might be better suited to fishing expeditions
Alarming: The Boston Harbor Hotel will need more than a few sandbags in the future to keep the water out, if Climate Central is correct
Drastic change: The Jefferson Memorial in Washington DC one day may only be accessible by boat
San Francisco's Crissy Field may one day be completely submerged
How San Francisco's Crissy Field might one day look from above
Water sight: Harvard campus would make for a nice boating lake in the future, apparently
Soaked: The lush lawn in front of the Military College of South Carolina may be lost forever
Sea-ing is believing: San Diego's Coronado Island may one day be claimed by the ocean
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