INTERVIEW: Rapa Nui's famous moai statues are under threat
Noah Paoa is a PhD candidate in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. His research focuses on sea level rise-induced flooding and its specific impacts on coastal cultural assets and archaeological sites throughout Polynesia. Using digital elevation mapping and wave-driven flood models, Paoa’s work projects future threats to irreplaceable heritage sites. In this episode of weekend one on one, he explains his research on Rapa Nui - also known as Easter Island - shows that iconic monuments, including the famous moai statues of Ahu Tongariki, are at significant risk from coastal erosion and could be reached by destructive waves as early as 2080