Research suggests some Pacific islands are getting bigger 3 Mar 20213 March 2021 Last updated at 13:13 Are these islands growing? Watch our report here. Researchers have discovered that hundreds of islands appear to be growing in the Pacific Ocean, despite the threat of rising sea levels. Scientists from the University of Auckland found that some islands have grown as much as 8% in size over the last 70 years. They used satellite images and data gathered on site to discover the changes. The researchers believe this evidence could help low-lying islands in the Pacific and Indian Ocean adapt to global warming in the future. How can an island grow?