Overview
- Sea surface temperatures, which Copernicus said Friday are nearing last year's monthly record, could match it within days.
- Copernicus ranked April the third-warmest on record at about 1.43 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
- The oceans outside the polar regions logged their second-highest April sea surface temperatures and saw widespread marine heatwaves in the tropical Pacific.
- The WMO says precursors of an El Niño are forming, a Pacific pattern that warms the ocean and shifts winds and rain worldwide.
- Copernicus reported low Arctic sea ice and recent floods, storms and drought, conditions that could prime parts of Europe for a hotter, drier summer with higher wildfire risk.