Southern California Ocean Temperature Breaks 103-Year Record For September
LA JOLLA (CBSLA) — Southern California waters, famous for being much cooler than Atlantic Ocean waters, are warming up.
Scientists recorded a temperature of 78.3 degrees Thursday in the water off Scripps Pier in La Jolla – the warmest September temperature recorded since 1916.
"So we're right now having some of the warmest temperatures that we've ever seen in September for 103 years," said Melissa Carter of the Scripps Institute of Oceanography.
Just last year, the waters off Scripps Pier reached the highest-ever recorded temperature – 79.5 degrees.
The warmer Southern California waters are a boon for beachgoers.
"The water is exceptionally warm right now. It's nice, you don't have to get in and out," one woman said at Scripps Beach.
But the warmer water will have a major effect on kelp and marine life, Carter warned.
"With this warming happening so quickly, it doesn't allow organisms in the ocean to adapt fast enough," she said.
