Supermoon-spiked king tide offers sneak preview of sea-level rise along East Coast

This week’s supermoon was more than a spectacular sight in the night sky. It nudged up sea levels, leading to areas of coastal flooding along the East Coast.

Such inundation offered a glimpse of the new normal in certain low-lying areas as sea levels rise because of climate change.

Coastal sections of South Florida and New England were among those immersed in ocean water on Monday and Tuesday during high tide cycles. From Palm Beach to Miami, the Weather Service hoisted coastal flood advisories cautioning that tidal levels were running about a foot above normal “due to the occurrence of the super moon.”

In New England, the Weather Service office in Boston said the combination of “very high astronomical tides” and a weak coastal storm would result in a water nearly a foot above normally dry land at high tide.

Other coastal areas along the East Coast were also experiencing coastal flooding, including Charleston, S.C.