WHOI/NASA Summer School in Sea Level Science

Rationale

Sea level rise is one of the greatest planetary challenges we face. As rates continue to climb, and the impacts grow more costly, it becomes more important to generate and deliver accurate, physics-based future sea level rise forecasts and projections to support coastal resilience, planning, and decision making.

Generating future sea level estimates requires deep knowledge of Earth system processes that influence sea level changes across space and time. Sea level science is inherently interdisciplinary, drawing on oceanography, geodesy, hydrology, geophysics, cryospheric science, statistics, modeling, science communication, and coastal resilience. However, since there are no programs or curricula dedicated to this interdisciplinary field, it can be challenging for early career sea level researchers to receive the mentorship they need, to establish the necessary foundation of basic sea level science, and to form the collaborative relationships required to tackle urgent questions at the forefront of the field.

To address this challenge, we held the 2026 Summer School in Sea Level Science (SSiSLS) for graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and other early career scientists at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) in Woods Hole on 17-30 May 2026.

Goals, outcomes, and impact

The Summer School in Sea Level Science brought together graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and other early career sea level scientists alongside leading faculty and experts in theories, models, and observations of sea level change.

The main goals of the summer school were to provide attendees with training in the physical mechanisms, drivers, and impacts of global and regional sea level changes as well as hands-on experience with both the global satellite and in situ observing and monitoring systems used for tracking sea level changes across space and time as well as major modeling frameworks used to understand and attribute past sea level changes and to forecast and project future sea level changes.

Format featured traditional lectures on physical science, observing systems, and modeling tools; hands-on practical sessions where students had opportunities to actively interact with faculty and put into practice principles learned during the lectures; and free and open project time, when the students worked with one another towards team capstone projects presented at the end of the summer school. This created a forum for active discussion, collaboration, and shared learning by bringing together scientists across a range of disciplines for a dedicated period of time, enabling early career researchers to make peer connections, form mentoring relationships, and forge their own sense of scientific identity.

Curriculum

The topics covered in the summer school included:

• Processes: large-scale ocean dynamics including the meridional overturning circulation, coastal ocean processes, the physics of glaciers and ice sheets including instability processes, groundwater processes, sea level-permafrost interactions, glacial isostatic adjustment, hydrological cycle, air-sea interaction, geodesy
• Modeling: Estimating the Circulation and Climate of the Ocean (ECCO), Ice-Sheet and Sea-level System Model/Sea-Level Projection System (ISSM-SLPS), Framework for Assessing Changes to Sea-Level (FACTS), Ice Sheet Model Intercomparison Project (ISMIP), Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP)
• Observations: tide gauges, satellite altimetry (Sentinel-6A, SWOT, ICESat-2), satellite gravimetry (GRACE/GRACE-FO), Argo, interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR), ocean observing systems, global navigation satellite system (GNSS)/global positioning system (GPS)
• Applications: extremes, compound events, high-tide flooding, ecosystem impacts, interactions with stakeholders and practitioners

Summer School Faculty—

Week 1 (17-23 May):

• Roger Creel, Texas A&M University
• Sönke Dangendorf, Tulane University
• Devon Dunmire, University at Buffalo
• Denis Felikson, Goddard Space Flight Center
• Gael Forget, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Geoffrey (Jake) Gebbie, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
• Julia Guimond, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
• Praveen Kumar, Rutgers University
• Isabela Le Bras, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
• Christopher Piecuch, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
• Jessica Rich, Virginia Tech
• Angelica Rodriguez, Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• Michael Willis, Virginia Tech

Week 2 (24-30 May):

• Surendra Adhikari, Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• Sloan Coats, University of Hawaii
• Sophie Coulson, University of New Hampshire
• Shannon Hulst, WHOI Sea Grant
• Felix Landerer, Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• Steven Lentz, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
• Sophie Nowicki, University at Buffalo
• Julius Oelsmann, Tulane University
• Christopher Piecuch, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
• Elizabeth Ultee, Goddard Space Flight Center

Resources from the 2026 Summer School in Sea Level Science are available through GitHub and Google Drive.

Organization and Selection

Applicant Selection Committee:

• Denis Felikson, Goddard Space Flight Center
• Julia Guimond, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
• Sophie Nowicki, University at Buffalo
• Christopher Piecuch, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Local Organizing Committee:

• Cora Hersh, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
• Kelly McKeon, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
• Christopher Piecuch, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution