Än en gång har forskning presenterats om de små söderhavsöarna, atollerna som skulle översvämmas. Nu har det inte skett så. Sammantaget har dessa små öar i Funafutiatollen  i genomsnitt vuxit med 7,3 % under drygt 100 år. Se “Coral islands defy sea-level rise over the past century: Records from a central Pacific atoll” av P.S. Kench,  D. Thompson,  M.R. Ford,  H. Ogawa and  R.F. McLean. Artikel publicerad i tidskriften Geology. http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/early/2015/04/27/G36555.1.abstract?papetoc

”We analyzed six time slices of shoreline position over the past 118 yr at 29 islands of Funafuti Atoll to determine their physical response to recent sea-level rise. Despite the magnitude of this rise, no islands have been lost, the majority have enlarged, and there has been a 7.3% increase in net island area over the past century (A.D. 1897–2013). There is no evidence of heightened erosion over the past half-century as sea-level rise accelerated. Reef islands in Funafuti continually adjust their size, shape, and position in response to variations in boundary conditions, including storms, sediment supply, as well as sea level.”