Why we're sinking

• Subsidence can crack roads, destabilize buildings and make low-lying areas more flood-prone.

Threat level: In terms of the ratio of high and very-high-risk buildings to the total buildings in each city, Austin (1 in 71) trails only San Antonio (1 in 45). Fort Worth is third (1 in 143).

• 82% of the U.S. buildings at very high risk are in San Antonio (1,515), Austin (706) and Houston (376).

What they did: In a peer-reviewed study published this month in Nature, researchers analyzed six years of satellite radar data in the 28 most populous U.S. cities.

State of play: Subsidence has long been associated with sinking cities such as Houston — the fastest-sinking of the 28 studied — but the research shows it's a widespread issue across the U.S.