Pacific Ocean Is Hotter Than Ever, Still Warming

Pacific water hit 3.05°C above normal on 19 September, topping the 3.02°C one-day high from 2015. By one yardstick for El Niño — the warming pattern in the central and eastern Pacific — this developing event is now the strongest measured. By another yardstick that adjusts for overall ocean warming, it is not. The warmest point is still weeks away.