The oceans are becoming increasingly warmer. According to new research by dozens of international scientists published In Progress in Atmospheric Science As of Friday, the world’s oceans stored more heat in 2025 than in any other year on record.
The upper 2,000 meters of the ocean absorbed a record-setting 23 zettajoules more energy in 2025 than in 2024. This amount is about 37 times more than the world’s energy consumption in 2023, according to scientists at the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Institute of Atmospheric Physics at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the European Union’s Copernicus Maritime Service.
Average sea surface temperature – a key metric that can influence weather patterns – was about 0.5 degrees Celsius (or about one degree Fahrenheit) above average from 1981 to 2010, the third highest on record.
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These warm surface temperatures are a factor in Earth’s overall annual surface temperature; 2025 is expected to be the second or third hottest year on record.
Oceans are like the climate’s version of soundproofing in a music studio; They absorb about 90 percent of the extra heat gained from rising levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Warmer oceans contribute to sea level rise, disrupting delicate marine ecosystems and driving extreme weather. Scientists warn that without urgent action to tackle the climate crisis, the oceans will only continue to warm.
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