Gulf of Maine Warming

Gulf of Maine warming is the rapid rise in sea temperature in this semi-enclosed shelf sea off the northeastern United States. Pershing and colleagues reported in Science in 2015 that the Gulf warmed faster than 99 percent of the global ocean over 2004 to 2013, near 0.5 degrees C per year, after tracking the global trend of about 0.05 degrees C per year since 1982. The acceleration is tied to a poleward shift of the Gulf Stream and reduced inflow of cold Labrador Current water through the Northeast Channel. The warming has shifted cod, lobster, and other stocks and stressed regional fisheries management.