The current marine heat wave (MHW) in California, combined with effects from the still-developing and very strong El Nino, have been shattering ocean temperature records up and down the state. MBNMS staff have directly experienced this warming. On a week-long research dive trip inside the newly established Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary, divers routinely reported bottom water temperatures in the high 60’s. Here are some recent articles and resources that cover this phenomenon.
Marine heat wave impacting California coastal water temperatures – CBS San Francisco 8/30/26. This article summarizes warm temperatures in MBNMS. Marine heat waves can trigger widespread ecological collapse and intensify extreme weather. MBNMS has been categorized as under a heat wave for 194 days so far this year (as of 8/30/26); last year, it was 130 days total.
California’s Marine Heatwave Shatters Ocean Temperature Records – Surfer 9/2/26. Reporter Anna FitzGerald Guth details how the persistent California marine heat wave is now layering with a rapidly strengthening El Niño event. The article features insights from Daniel Rudnick, a physical oceanographer at Scripps, who is currently tracking unusual deep-water heat off the coast using robotic underwater gliders. It also details the ecological strain biologists are bracing for.
This year’s unusual El Niño just got even stronger – SF Gate 9/10/26. It pulls recent data from the Scripps buoys and includes commentary from Scripps climate scientist Alexander Gershunov, who explains how the ocean’s evaporation is driving intense, humid heatwaves on land and keeping overnight temperatures remarkably high.
You can track the current marine heatwave at Blobtracker.
Scripps Institution of Oceanography’s Coastal Data Information Program (CDIP): If you want direct buoy data, the Scripps CDIP network has been reporting record-breaking temperatures this summer. Recently, long-running CDIP buoys off Santa Monica Bay and Torrey Pines recorded water temperatures roughly 6°F above their multi-decade averages, with Torrey Pines hitting 77°F in late August.