The sea level time series of Trieste, Molo Sartorio, Italy (1869–2021)

Abstract

The sea level observations carried out at Trieste, Molo Sartorio, from 1869 to 2021 have been revised and updated. Information on the tide gauges and on the geodetic benchmarks on Molo Sartorio during that period have been collected. Basic quality checks have been applied. The hourly data for the 1917–1938 period, digitized from the original charts, have allowed us to build a time series of hourly sea level heights from 1905 to 2021. Gaps of up to 24 h have been filled by interpolation. The errors affecting the monthly and annual mean sea levels have been estimated. The availability of monthly and annual means prior to 1904 allowed us to build a mean sea level time series spanning 153 years, characterized by linear trends of an observed sea level of 1.36 ± 0.17 mm yr−1 and of an inverse-barometer-corrected sea level of 1.45 ± 0.13 mm yr−1. A significant acceleration of 0.008 ± 0.004 mm yr−2 was estimated from the inverse-barometer-corrected sea level time series. This data set represents the most up-to-date data set of sea level observations and ancillary information relative to the tide-gauge station of Trieste, Molo Sartorio. The data are available through SEANOE (https://doi.org/10.17882/62758, Raicich, 2022).