No, according to modern scientific data, the World Ocean cannot flood all the land in the foreseeable future. This is prevented by a number of fundamental geographical and geological factors.

Why water will not cover the entire planet

• Insufficient water. Even if all the glaciers and ice sheets on Earth melt, the ocean level will rise, according to various estimates, by about 60–70 meters. This is enough to flood many coastal cities and low-lying islands, but to cover all the land, including high mountains, this volume of water is catastrophically insufficient. There is simply not enough water on the planet to cover the highest land.
• Land volume. The ocean already covers about 71% of the Earth's surface now. If the planet's surface were perfectly flat, the water would be enough to cover it with a layer about 2.7 kilometers deep. However, the land has huge mountain ranges and elevations that would even in this hypothetical scenario remain above water.

What will actually happen: the threat to coastal zones

Scientific forecasts do not speak of complete flooding of the land, but of a significant but localized rise in water levels, which will become a serious problem for coastal regions:

• Current rise: The level of the World Ocean is rising at an accelerating pace. Over the last 30 years, it has risen by about 10 centimeters, and the current rate is about 3.4–5.9 millimeters per year.
• Forecast by 2100: According to scientists' estimates, by the end of the century, the sea level may rise by 1–2 meters. This will lead to more frequent floods and storm surges in many coastal megacities, and some island states may disappear under water.
• Long-term perspective: Even if all the glaciers melt completely, the ocean level may rise by tens of meters. But even in this scenario, we are talking about flooding vast coastal territories and low-lying plains, not the complete submersion of all continents.

Looking back at the geological past: were there 'water worlds'?

There were indeed periods in Earth's history when the ocean level was significantly higher.

• Jurassic period: About 117 million years ago, during the time of dinosaurs, the sea level was about 200 meters higher than today. This resulted in about 30% of modern land being covered by shallow seas. However, there were still extensive land areas even then.
• Remote past: Some scientists believe that in the early period of Earth's formation, when continents were just beginning to appear, the ocean could have covered almost the entire planet. But these were completely different geological eras, with a different volume of water and structure of the Earth's crust.

Conclusion: Complete flooding of the land in the foreseeable future is impossible. However, the melting of glaciers and the rising sea level already represent a real threat to coastal regions and large cities. Instead of a global apocalypse, humanity will have to deal with more localized but no less serious problems related to the 'slow flood' of coastlines and the need to adapt to new climatic realities.
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