Scientists Confirm Once Again That Global Warming Hiatus Never Happened

Scientists have confirmed that global ocean temperatures have continued to rise over the past few decades — once again debunking the notion of a “hiatus” in global land and sea surface warming in the first 15 years of the 21st century. The new research, published this week in the journal Science Advances, was conducted by scientists at the University of California, Berkeley and the non-profit research institute Berkeley Earth. The study supports an earlier finding by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) that buoy-based sensors report slightly cooler ocean temperatures than historical ship-based systems — which made it appear as though temperature increases had slowed as the bulk of data collection shifted from ships to the new technology. Using measurements from floating buoys, ocean-based observation stations, and satellites over the past two decades, the new study confirmed that global sea surface temperatures have risen 0.12 degrees C per decade over the last 19 years, nearly double the previous estimate of 0.07 degrees C per decade.