00:00Global sea surface temperatures have reached record highs for this time of year, providing
00:05the latest stark indication that the world's oceans are entering what scientists describe
00:10as uncharted territory.
00:12On June 21st, the global average ocean temperature reached an unprecedented 21 degrees Celsius
00:18according to measurements taken by the Copernicus Climate Change Service and the Copernicus
00:23Marine Service.
00:24This new reading officially beats the previous record peaks set in 2023 and 2024 by 0.1
00:31degrees Celsius, a margin that may seem small but can wreak severe havoc on fragile marine
00:37ecosystems.
00:38Copernicus director Carlo Buentempo warned that current conditions likely indicate the
00:43beginning of a volatile new phase, with more temperature records expected to fall in the
00:48coming months.
00:49Climate scientists emphasize that the core underlying crisis of ocean warming will continue
00:55to worsen until global fossil fuel consumption is halted.
00:58The soaring marine temperatures echo recent United Nations projections, which found a 91%
01:04probability that at least one of the next five years will exceed the critical 1.5 degrees
01:10Celsius global warming threshold.
01:12The real-world impacts of a warmer ocean extend far beyond the coast, as heated waters rapidly
01:18increase evaporation rates and fuel the atmosphere with extra energy, triggering intense rainfall,
01:24flash flooding and severe heatwaves on nearby land.
01:28As Copernicus researchers continue to monitor the phenomenon, experts warn that many major global
01:34cities remain entirely unprepared for the unprecedented scale of extreme weather events driven by
01:39the shifting marine conditions.
01:42This is a great question.
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