Ocean surface temperatures hit record high

“The planet is warming because we’re emitting vast quantities of greenhouse gases, primarily from fossil fuel burning,” one expert said.

Temperatures on the ocean surface hit a record high in June, European scientists warned Wednesday, fueling fears of more dangerous heat waves this summer and fanning concerns over the escalating global climate crisis.

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Two separate services under the European Union’s Copernicus Earth observation program — the Copernicus Climate Change Service and the Copernicus Marine Service — announced they had both independently confirmed the record temperatures.

Carlo Buontempo, director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service, warned that the rising temperatures could mark the “beginning of a new phase.”