Marine heatwaves are upon us
Warm weather and seas have seen Kiwis flocking to the beaches in the past two summers. Both years featured marine heatwaves - periods of five or more days where water temperatures exceed 90% of those measured over the past 30 years.
Last summer, measurements of sea temperatures from a fleet of sophisticated buoys found surface waters off our west coast almost four degrees above normal, with this warmer water extending down to 80m in the south of the country. Looking at the trend over the past decade suggests more warm years are on the way.