The hottest is yet to come for the Med: The Mediterranean Sea — which hit its highest median temperature recording since 1982 last week at 28.7°C — is expected to record its hottest surface temperature yet later this month, Bloomberg writes, referencing data by Spain’s Institute of Marine Sciences. The World Meteorological Organization expects surface temperatures to exceed 30°C in some parts, and stay over 4°C above average in large parts of the western Mediterranean in August.

What does this mean? The Mediterranean hosts approximately 18% of all marine life, and rising sea temperatures are damaging a range of marine species, including Posidonia oceanica, a seagrass which serves as a natural carbon sink and an essential nursery for fish, researcher at the World Wide Fund for Nature’s Mediterranean Marine Initiative Mauro Randone told Bloomberg. The Mediterranean Sea saw its temperature rise between 0.6-1ºC over the last three decades. While 44% of the global ocean recently recorded marine heat waves, the Mediterranean is a “sort of a lab for climate change — it’s one of the fastest warming parts of the ocean in the world,” research scientist at Mercator Simon van Gennip told Bloomberg.

The Southern Hemisphere is experiencing historic high winter temperatures due to climate change and the effects of the El Niño climate pattern, Bloomberg reported last week. Argentina’s capital Buenos Aires recorded its hottest 1 August in 117 years last week. Chile’s Vicuna reported a near-record 38.3°C on Tuesday, and the country’s capital Santiago hit 24°C on Wednesday, some 8° above the 16-17°C average for August. The increase in winter temperatures in South America jeopardizes the longevity of snowfields in the Andes mountains on which many Chilean farms and cities depend for water supplies. Chilean Environment Minister Maisa Rojas took to social media to call for an urgent phaseout of fossil fuels to tame extreme weather events.

ICYMI- We’re currently experiencing El Niño after a four-year absence. Read our Enterprise Explains on the weather phenomenon here and here.

OTHER STORIES WORTH KNOWING ABOUT THIS MORNING-

  • The IRA bill could halve US emissions by 2050: The Biden Administration’s USD 369 bn Inflation Reduction Act could increase EV adoption to account for 63% of the US passenger fleet by 2040 and slash about half of US greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, but it is expected to fall short of achieving the country’s carbon neutrality commitment by mid-century due to a lack of incentives for clean hydrogen use and carbon capture and storage adoption beyond 2033. (Bloomberg)
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