The Warmest Swimming Ever
Worldwide ocean surface temperatures reached a record high this summer with more dramatic highs on the coast of New England, according to the Boston Globe.
· According to the National Climactic Data Center, worldwide ocean surface temperatures reached a record high this summer, rising to more than 1 degree above average.
· The coast of New England saw a far more dramatic rise in temperatures to more than 64 degrees – 3 degrees higher than the 20th century average.
· Most researchers say it is possible global warming is a contributing factor, though no definite link has been established.
· Warmer than average waters can have a myriad of affects, among them driving away fish that prefer cooler temperatures.
An excerpt of the article is below. Read the full article at the Boston Globe.
The Warmest Swimming Ever
From Maine south, ocean temperatures topped charts
By Peter Schworm and Sarah Schweitzer
Boston Globe, September 7 2009
It was a September day with a hint of fall in the ocean air, but the surf off Salisbury Beach beckoned warmly. Babies splashed and boogie-boarders rode wave after wave. Swimmers strolled into shallows that were like tepid tide pools.
“Usually I have to wade in and get numb,’’ said Joanne Smith, a Littleton resident taking an extended swim with her 11-year-old son, Chris. “Today, I was able to just get right in.’’
Up and down the New England coast, beachgoers this summer have reveled in unusually warm water, with even ankle-waders taking the once-bracing plunge. From York Beach in Maine to Horseneck Beach in Westport, vacationers and day-trippers marveled at the sudden absence of what Smith called the “pain factor,’’ the numbing sting that on the warmest days would make a quick dip a gasping ordeal.
Read the full article at the Boston Globe
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