The average surface temperature of the oceans reached a record of 20.96 ºC this weekaccording to data from the European Copernicus observatory released this Friday.
That peak, which according to the ERA5 database was reached on July 30, surpassed “the previous record of 20.95ºC from March 2016,” a Copernicus spokesperson said.
These data refer to the oceans between the 60th parallel north and south, and exclude only the polar regions.
The information was confirmed by satellite observations and temperature records taken directly from the sea from ships and weather buoys.
The United States Oceanic and Atmospheric Observing Agency (NOAA), which uses a different database, also observes the same warming trend in the oceans in recent months, with a record temperature reached on April 4 of 21.06 degrees. The temperature was almost at the same level (21.03 °C) on August 1.
The oceans absorb 90% of the excess heat of the Earth system caused by human activity of the industrial age.
Vicious circle
This overheating of the oceans will have other chain effects on biodiversity, such as the migration of species or the arrival of invasive species, threatening fish stocks and, therefore, the food security of certain parts of the planet.
“The ocean heat wave poses an immediate threat to some marine life, we are already seeing signs of coral bleaching in Florida as a direct consequence, and I expect further negative consequences,” said Piers Forster, a professor specializing in climate change at the University of Florida. of Leeds in the UK.
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On the other hand, warmer waters have less capacity to absorb CO2, which reinforces the vicious circle of global warming.
This temperature record follows a series of other highs for several weeks. And there could be more, since the El Niño phenomenon, which tends to warm the waters, has only just begun.
Its full effects will only really be felt towards the end of this year and will continue for years to come, experts say.
“Although there are other short-term factors, the main cause over the long term is undoubtedly the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere caused by human activity, in the first place, the combustion of fossil fuels,” said Rowan Sutton, a researcher specialist in climate from the University of Reading.
The use of coal, oil and gas will undoubtedly be at the center of the debates at the next COP28, the great international meeting on climate that will be held at the end of the year in Dubai.
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Accumulation of gases and the greenhouse effect affect ocean temperatures
The North Atlantic, emblematic of the observation point of the warming of the oceans, generally reaches its maximum temperature in September.
But on July 26, its waters had already arrived at an average temperature never before recordedwith a record figure for surface water, which reached 24.9 ºC, according to data from the US agency NOAA.
Since March, which is the month in which the North Atlantic begins to warm up after winter, the temperature curve has risen above that of previous years, further widening the gap in recent weeks.
A few days earlier, the Mediterranean Sea broke its daily heat record, with an average temperature of 28.71 °C, according to the main Spanish maritime research center.
On the coast of Florida, in the United States, on Monday recorded a record temperature of 38.3ºCthat corresponding to that of the water in a jacuzzi, and which could potentially represent an absolute world record in terms of specific measurements.
