ASSOCIATED PRESS • April 27, 2023
The world’s oceans have suddenly spiked much hotter and well above record levels in the last few weeks, with scientists trying to figure out what it means and whether it forecasts a surge in atmospheric warming. Some researchers said, record-breaking ocean temperatures this month could be the first in many heat records to shatter. From early March to this week, the global average ocean sea surface temperature jumped 0.36 degree Fahrenheit, according to the University of Maine’s Climate Reanalyzer, which climate scientists use and trust. For the average of the world’s oceans – which is 71% of Earth’s area –to rise so much in that short a time, “that’s huge,” said climate scientist Kris Karnauskas.