The oceans this summer are the warmest on record

The National Climatic Data Centre, the government agency that keeps weather records in the US, stated that the average global ocean temperature in July was 17-Celsius degrees, which is the hottest since record keeping began way back in 1880. The previous record was set in 1998.

Meteorologists blame a combination of a natural El Nino weather pattern on top of the worsening situation of man-made global warming. The warmer water could add to the melting of sea ice and possibly even strengthen some hurricanes.

The Gulf of Mexico, where warm water provides the natural fuel for hurricanes, has temperatures dancing around 90. Most of the water in the Northern Hemisphere has been considerably warmer than normal. The Mediterranean is about 3 degrees warmer than for example. Higher temperatures rule in the Pacific and Indian Oceans too.

The impact of the this new warmer ocean reality is most noticeable near the Arctic, where water temperatures are as much as a shocking 10 degrees above average. The shattering of heat records in water is more ominous as a sign of global warming than breaking temperature marks on land. This is due to the fact that water takes longer to heat up and does not cool down so easily. University of Victoria climate scientist Andrew Weaver said, "This is another yet really important indicator of the change that's occurring,”

By Hypo Global a Progress sister publication

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