Oceans Are Warming Faster and Faster as the Earth Traps More Energy
New findings provide early evidence that burning fossil fuels played a major role in the worrying spike in ocean temperatures in 2023 and 2024.
Waves crash above the seawall flooding Malecon esplanade following Hurricane Ian in Havana, Cuba, in September 2022.
Photographer: Natalia Favre/BloombergThe world’s oceans are warming four times faster than they were in the late 1980s, according to a new study. The alarming acceleration helps explain why 2023 and 2024 saw unprecedented ocean temperatures — and more extreme storms.
The findings have enormous ramifications for ocean health, as rising temperatures impact everything from coral reefs to fisheries. The longer-term knock-on impacts are even more concerning, including higher sea levels, more extreme storms, and more frequent and severe fires, said Christopher Merchant, lead author of the study, which was published in Environmental Research Letters on Tuesday.