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Soon, Our Oceans Could Feel Like Jacuzzis - The New York Times [1]
['Diana Nyad']
Date: 2023-08-14
Millions of people dating back to ancient days have waded and bobbed and frolicked close to shore for exercise, peace and pleasure, and to connect with perhaps the grandest of all of Mother Nature’s majestic features. But to step into the water off Miami late last month was akin to stepping into a hot Jacuzzi, the antithesis of refreshing and inspiring. Years from now, we may well remember the summer of 2023 as the beginning of an era when many of our oceans stopped serving as a glorious place of recreation.
My childhood was spent in the very waters off the Florida coast that recently registered temperatures in the triple digits. Growing up in Fort Lauderdale, the memories that loom largest are oceanic — spending all day splashing in the surf, laughing with my brother and sister, dunking one another, riding waves and playing endless underwater games, racing out to this or that buoy, flopping into bed at night exhausted and exhilarated by the magic caress of our irreplaceable backyard playground.
At age 9, after the Cuban Revolution, I searched the horizon to catch a glimpse of Cuba, this suddenly forbidden island. My mother pointed out across the ocean and said to me: “There. Havana is just across there. It’s so close that you, you little swimmer, you could actually swim there.” Later, after five attempts over 35 years, I finally did make that crossing. But I couldn’t have made that swim last month. In such hot water, the body heat I’d generate from the duress of the effort — a continuous 52 hours and 54 minutes — would quickly lead to overheating and failure. And danger. Hyperthermia would conquer even the strongest of wills.
Of course, that would only be one small consequence of swimming in these heated waters.
Years ago, the Chambers of Commerce along Florida’s shores were surely consumed with worries about the increase in jellyfish swarms that have come with warmer waters. Now they’re no doubt huddled in meetings, contemplating the disaster that will ensue if these uncomfortable water temperatures drive tourists away for good.
And Florida is far from the only place where water temperatures are rising. Across the lower latitudes near the Equator, this marine heat wave has been massive. From southern Mexico through the Caribbean and to the western Indian Ocean, 40 percent of the world’s oceans have already fallen victim to the blunt force trauma of climate change. As of late June, it was warm enough to meet the criteria for a marine heat wave.
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[1] Url:
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/14/opinion/ocean-temperature-climate-change.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
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