May 13, 2026 — The ocean off California’s coast is heating up again — and this time, the impacts are showing up on shore.
The marine heat wave has developed across much of the West Coast, stretching from Washington to California. In some areas, ocean temperatures have climbed 4 to 8 degrees above average. At the Scripps Pier in San Diego, ocean temperatures have logged record-high readings on more than 30 days through April, with about one-fifth of the year so far reaching record levels for that location.
Scientists have long warned of this pattern: when ocean temperatures spike, the effects move quickly through the food web, from plankton to fish to the animals that depend on them.