Climate2 min read
Climate
Global Ocean Surface Temperature Hits Record High as El Niño Adds Extra Heat
The daily global average sea surface temperature reached its highest level since records began in 1979, as El Niño added extra heat to an already-warming ocean, according to the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service.
Step by step
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Ocean already warming worldwide
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El Niño adds extra heat to Pacific
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Global sea surface temperature hits record
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Copernicus confirms record, warns of risks
Global ocean temperatures have reached a new record as El Niño — a natural climate pattern that recurs every few years, in which surface waters in the tropical Pacific Ocean turn unusually warm and release extra heat into the atmosphere — adds to an already-warming ocean. On Saturday, Aug. 22, the daily global average sea surface temperature (SST) was hotter than at any point since record-keeping began in 1979, according to the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service.
Sea surface temperature is the heat measured at the ocean's uppermost layer, and it is one of the key indicators scientists use to track how much heat the ocean has absorbed and how that heat can influence weather patterns and marine life. Copernicus, the EU's climate monitoring service, has recorded daily global SST figures since 1979, and Saturday's reading was the highest in that entire record, which spans more than four decades.
Researchers warn that a warming ocean carries serious consequences for marine ecosystems and coastal communities.
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#ocean temperature#el nino#climate change#copernicus#sea surface temperature
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