Ocean temperatures set to break all-time record: what’s next? High sea surface temperatures are expected to weaken ocean carbon sinks and damage coral reefs. By James Dinneen

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-026-02496-3?utm_source=Live+Audience&utm_campaign=07bdbe7ad7-nature-briefing-daily-20260813&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-33f35e09ea-50432164 The world’s oceans are on the brink of setting an all-time heat record, reaching temperatures that could roil marine ecosystems and sap the ocean’s ability to take up carbon dioxide from the air. Sea surface temperatures have already broken records for the past two months — boosted by human-induced climate change and a powerful El Niño event growing in the Pacific Ocean. The average surface temperature is now hovering just a few hundredths of a degree below the current record from March 2024. “It just spells trouble for the planet,” says climate scientist Kristina Dahl.