The United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s preliminary data revealed a historic development — the highest-ever temperature recorded this week in the North Atlantic, surpassing its usual annual peak.
This notable occurrence comes after the Mediterranean region also experienced a new record high in temperatures. Adding to the worrying situation, scientific evaluations indicate that July will become the warmest month ever recorded, aggravating the scorching heat caused by global warming and impacting millions of people worldwide.
According to Xungang Yin, a scientist at NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, the average sea surface temperature in the North Atlantic Ocean reached a record 24.9 degrees Celsius (76.8 degrees Fahrenheit) on Wednesday.
What makes this record even more alarming is its early timing, as the North Atlantic typically reaches its peak temperature in early September instead of July, making the urgency to address climate change and its repercussions is now more apparent than ever.
Meanwhile, the previous record high was recorded in September 2022, at 24.89 degrees Celsius, Yin said.
NOAA, which has been tracking sea temperatures since the early 1980s, will need about two weeks to confirm the preliminary findings.
The Mediterranean Sea reached its highest temperature on record Monday, Spanish researchers said — amid an exceptional heat wave in Europe.
The record of 28.71 degrees Celsius was announced by Spain’s Institute of Marine Sciences, which analysed data from satellites used by the European Earth observation programme, Copernicus.