[ti:Scientists Warn of High Temperatures in the Mediterranean Sea] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]Climate scientists are warning of serious problems for life [00:04.08]in the Mediterranean Sea [00:06.00]because of high temperatures during the summer. [00:09.92]The scientists say they are seeing high water temperatures [00:13.72]across the sea from Barcelona in Spain to Tel Aviv in Israel. [00:19.80]Temperatures have been reported from 3 degrees Celsius [00:23.68]to 5 degrees Celsius above usual temperatures for the summer. [00:29.36]They report that water temperatures [00:32.00]have regularly gone above 30 degrees Celsius. [00:37.52]Extreme heat in Europe and other countries around the Mediterranean [00:42.28]has gotten a lot of attention this summer. [00:45.16]But rising sea temperatures have received less attention. [00:51.76]Marine heat waves are caused by ocean currents [00:55.36]building up areas of warm water. [00:58.64]Weather systems and heat in the atmosphere [01:01.96]can also add warmth to the water's temperature. [01:05.24]And just like heat waves on land, marine heat waves are longer, [01:11.32]happen more often and are more intense because of climate change. [01:18.04]The situation is "very worrying," says Joaquim Garrabou. [01:23.00]He is a researcher at the Institute of Marine Sciences in Barcelona. [01:30.04]"We are pushing the system too far. We have [01:33.44]to take action on the climate issues as soon as possible." [01:39.20]Garrabou is part of a team that recently [01:42.04]published a report on heat waves [01:44.48]in the Mediterranean Sea between 2015 and 2019. [01:50.64]The report says the heat waves [01:53.04]have led to deaths of a large number of marine species. [01:58.24]The study found about 50 species, [02:01.16]including corals, sponges and seaweed, were affected [02:05.68]along thousands of kilometers of Mediterranean coasts. [02:10.52]The study was published in Global Change Biology. [02:16.28]The situation in the eastern Mediterranean is especially notable. [02:21.04]The waters off Israel, Cyprus, Lebanon and Syria [02:26.08]are "the hottest hot spot in the Mediterranean, for sure," said Gil Rilov. [02:31.84]He is a marine scientist at Israel's Oceanographic [02:36.44]and Limnological Research Institute, [02:39.56]and one of the writers of the study. [02:42.92]Sea temperatures in the summer [02:45.40]are now regularly above 31 degrees Celsius. [02:51.68]These warming seas are driving [02:53.96]native species to the edge of survival. [02:57.00]Every summer their desired temperature [03:00.04]is being exceeded, he said. [03:03.64]Scientists expect to see species [03:06.08]loss further west in the Mediterranean Sea [03:09.12]toward Greece, Italy and Spain in the coming years. [03:14.56]Garrabou said seas have been absorbing [03:18.00]90 percent of the Earth's extra heat. [03:20.88]They also absorb 30 percent of carbon dioxide [03:24.76]released into the atmosphere by coal, oil and gas production. [03:30.32]This is called the carbon-sink effect. [03:34.44]Scientists say oceans protect the planet [03:37.92]from more intense climate effects. [03:42.08]Ocean scientists want officials to protect [03:45.24]at least 30 percent of sea areas from human activities like fishing. [03:51.32]About 8 percent of the Mediterranean Sea area is currently protected. [03:58.12]Recent scientific studies say that surface temperatures on the Mediterranean [04:03.76]have increased by 0.4 degrees Celsius every 10 years [04:08.36]between 1982 and 2018. [04:13.28]Yearly, it has been rising by 0.05 degrees Celsius over the past 10 years. [04:20.88]Some scientists say even very small increases in average temperatures [04:26.52]can have serious effects on ocean health. [04:31.40]The Mediterranean Sea makes up less than 1 percent of the world's oceans. [04:36.72]But experts estimate it contains between four [04:40.84]and 18 percent of the world's known marine species. [04:46.52]"The question is not about the survival of nature, [04:49.76]because biodiversity will find ways to survive on the planet," Garrabou said [04:57.48]"The question is if we keep going in this direction [05:00.80]maybe our society, humans, will not have a place to live." [05:06.28]I'm Dan Novak. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM