Global ocean surface temperatures are hovering just below historic highs and could break records later this year as a new El Nino pattern gathers strength, a leading climate physicist warned ahead of World Oceans Day on June 8.
El Nino is typically marked by rising ocean surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific. It generally occurs every two to seven years, lasting nine to 12 months. The cycle often develops between March and June, peaks between November and February, and its influence on global temperatures is most evident in the second year after onset.
Data released on May 8 by the Copernicus Climate Change Service, the European Union's climate monitoring agency, showed that the average sea surface temperature for non-polar oceans reached about 21 degrees Celsius in April 2026. That figure sits just shy of the historic record of 21.04 degrees set in April 2024. Vast areas of the tropical Pacific also registered record warmth alongside severe marine heatwaves.
Helge Goessling, a climate physicist at Germany's Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Center for Polar and Marine Research, said that the rapid return to near-record warmth is alarming because the cycle is only in its infancy.
"The ocean temperature is already at a very high level, close to the peak of the strong El Nino period in 2024. But this year's El Nino has only just begun. We can therefore expect ocean temperatures to rise significantly within the year. I believe it is highly likely that we will see new sea surface temperature records by the end of this year and into next year," Goessling said.
According to Goessling, the current rise in ocean temperatures is driven by a combination of human-induced greenhouse gas emissions, which cause long-term global warming, and natural climate oscillations such as El Nino.
He added that the warming of the world's oceans has far-reaching consequences that extend well beyond the marine environment, exacerbating sea-level rise and increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme weather.
Goessling believes that the rise in ocean temperatures, part of the global climate change, will ultimately alter daily life across the globe.
"Ocean warming is a critical component of overall climate change. As I have said, when the oceans warm, temperatures and extreme weather events on land are intensified. The warming of the oceans also contributes to the sea-level rise, which of course will affect people on coasts. So all of these things are deeply interconnected. The ocean warming is a major part of man-made climate change, and therefore concerns everyone," said Goessling.
Global oceans near record heat as El Nino builds: expert
Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and Chinese president, said on Monday that the relationship between China and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) stands at a new historical starting point.
Xi arrived in the DPRK capital of Pyongyang earlier on Monday to begin a two-day state visit at the invitation of Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, marking his first trip to the country in seven years.
Delivering a speech at a welcome banquet hosted by Kim, Xi pointed out that China and the DPRK, linked by mountains and rivers and sharing a common future, have seen their traditional friendship passed down across generations and grow ever stronger over time through the test of the evolving international landscape.
This year marks the 65th anniversary of the China-DPRK Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, and the China-DPRK relationship stands at a new historical starting point, Xi said, noting that he has reached important consensus with Kim during his visit.
From the strategic perspective of the future and destiny of socialism, both leaders have agreed to seize the general trend of the times, respond to the shared aspirations of the two peoples, strengthen high-level exchanges, deepen strategic communication, expand practical cooperation, enhance people-to-people bonds, promote the high-level development of China-DPRK relations, jointly open up brighter prospects for the socialist cause of both countries, and contribute to the continuous progress of human society, Xi said.
The successful convening of the Ninth Congress of the WPK this year has made strategic plans and major arrangements for the long-term development of the Party and the country's cause, ushering in a new period of comprehensive development of the DPRK's socialist cause, Xi said.
As good neighbors, good friends and good comrades, the Chinese side sincerely wishes that, under the strong leadership of the Central Committee of the WPK headed by General Secretary Kim, the DPRK people will successfully accomplish the goals and tasks set by the Ninth Congress of the WPK and make constant new achievements in the socialist cause of the DPRK, Xi said.
On behalf of the WPK, the government and the people of the DPRK, Kim extended the warmest welcome to Xi on his visit. Kim said that Pyongyang was filled with an atmosphere of friendship on this special day as the DPRK's Party, government and people warmly welcomed their most distinguished guest.
Noting that Xi's first overseas trip of the year had brought him to the DPRK, Kim said this fully demonstrated the great importance Xi attached to developing relations between the two parties and the two countries, and constituted the most valuable support for the DPRK's socialist cause.
Noting the meeting with Xi came nine months after their previous meeting, Kim said that during this meeting, they reached important consensus on further advancing DPRK-China relations with new contemporary connotations in light of new changing circumstances, and exchanged views on international and regional issues of mutual concern, which will surely accelerate the development of the DPRK-China friendship with profound historical traditions, and contribute to peace and stability in the region and the world.
The DPRK people take heartfelt joy in the remarkable achievements made by the brotherly Chinese people, Kim said, expressing belief that under the leadership of the CPC with Xi at its core, the great Chinese people will surely create greater achievements in building a great modern socialist country in all respects, realizing the Second Centenary Goal, and completing the new journey toward the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
Xi says China-DPRK ties stand at new historical starting point
