The Ocean Surface is Warming Over 400% Faster Than in the 1980s [View all]

Sea surface temperature anomalies for 27 January 2025. The deeper the warm colors, the more anomalously high the sea temperature is. (NOAA)


The unexpected jump in global temperatures since 2023 has helped fuel a relentless assault of associated disasters around the world, including the Los Angeles fires and the deadly Valencia floods in Spain, leaving researchers scrambling for explanations.

Data from the world's oceans now reveal that an alarming acceleration in sea surface warming likely contributed. A new study from the University of Reading in the UK finds the tops of our oceans are warming more than four times faster than in the late 1980s.


We can still change the course of Earth's energy imbalance (EEI) if we stop emitting fossil fuels (green line scenario). (Merchant et al., Environ. Res. Lett., 2025)

Scenes like these below are in our future unless we do something now.



The remains of beachside homes in California destroyed in the Palisades Fire, 16 Jan 2025. (Photo: Mario Tama / Getty Images)


Aftermath of the floods in Valencia, Spain, 20 Oct 2024. (Photo: David Ramos /Staff / Getty Image News)


Police officers in an inflatable boat look for residents to evacuate in Guipry Messac, western France (Photo: AP)

Sources:

https://www.reading.ac.uk/news/2025/Research-News/Ocean-surface-warming-four-times-faster-now-than-late-1980s

https://www.sciencealert.com/the-ocean-surface-is-warming-over-400-faster-than-in-the-1980s

https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/products/extended-reconstructed-sst