- cross-posted to:
- news@lemmy.world
- cross-posted to:
- news@lemmy.world
The average daily global sea surface temperature beat a 2016 record this week, according to the EU’s climate change service Copernicus.
It reached 20.96C. That’s far above the average for this time of year.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
The average daily global sea surface temperature beat a 2016 record this week, according to the EU’s climate change service Copernicus.
Hotter oceans and heatwaves disturb marine species like fish and whales as they move in search of cooler waters, upsetting the food chain.
“The water feels like a bath when you jump in,” says Dr Kathryn Lesneski, who is monitoring a marine heatwave in the Gulf of Mexico for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Scientists are investigating why the oceans are so hot right now but say that climate change is making the seas warmer as they absorb most of the heating from greenhouse gas emissions.
The new average temperature record beats one set in 2016 when the naturally occurring climate fluctuation El Niño was in full swing and at its most powerful.
While air temperatures have seen some dramatic increases in recent years, the oceans take longer to heat up, even though they have absorbed 90% of the Earth’s warming from greenhouse gas emissions.
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