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Satellite images released on Monday provided visual evidence of disturbing new findings that the global ocean is warmer than ever.
The global average ocean temperature is now 21.1 degrees Celsius, surpassing the previous record of 21 degrees Celsius set in 2016, according to preliminary data from the US government agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), released today. last week.
This week, a satellite image from the European Union’s Copernicus space program showed that sea surface temperature (SST) changes in the Mediterranean and off the Atlantic coasts of the Iberian Peninsula and North Africa are 3 degrees Celsius higher than the expected or normal temperature for the period.
The alarming rise in ocean temperatures has significant implications with climate experts warning of more extreme weather events and marine storms around the world.
The ocean is warming due to the climate crisis driven by excessive amounts of greenhouse gas emissions entering the atmosphere, largely from the burning of fossil fuels.
The ocean is absorbing about 90 percent of the heat trapped by greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, according to scientific studies. This makes the ocean a crucial component in regulating the Earth’s climate system
Although average ocean temperatures haven’t been as high in recent years due to a weather phenomenon called La Niña, featuring cooler sea temperatures along South America’s tropical western coast, experts believe we could be heading for El Niño.
El Niño is a weather event in which the waters of the Pacific Ocean are unusually warm and can exacerbate the warming trend of the oceans. The second-warmest average ocean temperatures globally coincided with the last El Niño that ran from 2014 to 2016, according to NOAA data.
Reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) have warned of the devastating consequences of rising global temperatures. He said that by 2100 the ocean will absorb 2 to 4 times more heat than it did between 1970 and today if global warming is limited to 2°C, the Paris Agreement goal, and up to 5 -7 times more at higher emissions.
The warming of our oceans has far-reaching consequences, from extreme weather events to the loss of marine biodiversity.
As the ocean warms, it leads to the melting of the polar ice caps, resulting in a rise in sea levels. This additional water in the sea is then collected in the water cycle, intensifying precipitation and increasing the severity of storms such as hurricanes.
Warmer ocean temperatures also pose a major threat to marine wildlife, as they can disrupt ecosystems and cause widespread coral bleaching in tropical reefs.
Climate experts warn that the rising trend of warming oceans is a clear sign of an exacerbation of the climate crisis and underlines the urgent need for global action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate the impacts of global warming.
