Earlier in July, Earth clocked its hottest temperatures since we've been keeping records and many scientists believe maybe even going back a hundred thousand years or more.
When the planet is hotter, the ocean is hotter. In fact, the ocean absorbs 90% of our global warming.
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When the ocean warms and the ice caps melt, the ocean expands, bringing too much water into the coastlines.
A warmer ocean is extending the length of hurricane season because in May and December, temps are warm enough to allow systems to grow.
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And once a hurricane forms, we know that the warmer temps make it slower, wetter and stronger, the three things that can obliterate coastal communities.
With unprecedented water temps near our South Florida shores, our overnight low temperature records continue to fall because if the ocean temperature is stuck in the 90s, the air temperature struggles to drop below 85 degrees, even in the morning, for weeks and weeks.
And if the morning low starts in the mid 80s, it's more likely for afternoon records because we're already starting warmer.
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With the increased water temperatures comes increased humidity that surges into South Florida on a sea breeze.
The temperature plus the humidity gives us the heat index, the temperature our bodies think it is because they have to work harder to stay cool.
The heat index in Fort Lauderdale peaked at 118 degrees this past weekend and that can be deadly because our bodies simply can't stay cool.
And as the ocean continues to warm, we are reaching numbers that are sadly becoming too warm for coral reefs to survive.
These "Rain Forests Of The Sea" are incredibly resilient and can regenerate back to life after being near death because of warm ocean temps.
But researchers discovered water temperatures of 87 degrees 70 feet down off the coast of South Florida. If corals stay above 84 degrees for too long, they cannot be saved.
The forecast is near certain that within the next decade, many corals will be gone forever.
