Marine Heatwave 'The Blob' Continues Record-Breaking Chaos off West Coast

NOAA notes unprecedented warming and marine wildlife shifts; further impacts expected.

The Blob is back. Or so it seems.

A marine heatwave is wreaking havoc on the Pacific Ocean off California, with records continuing to be broken, reminiscent of the extreme (and ominously named) oceanic warming event of 2015, dubbed "The Blob." And things might get worse.

Couple that with the incoming El Niño - which experts are potentially predicting to be a "super" or even "Godzilla" event - and we could be in for a heater (literally) this summer.

Per the LA Times: "The ocean heat wave started forming at the end of last year but has worsened in recent weeks, according to readings from the Scripps Pier in La Jolla, which has broken more than 25 daily temperature records this year. The surface water temperature on Wednesday was 68.5 degrees -- 7.7 degrees above average for the date. The sea bottom was 67.6 degrees, the hottest April 15 in about 100 years of records."

Looking at the numbers, from Scripps, records are being broken on the daily. For instance, the most recent readings are as follows:

"How does April 17, 2026 compare to other years? April 17th, 2026 is tied for the hottest April 17th on record."

So, all indications are that the water is going to continue to warm, and potentially reignite the menacing Blob from 2015. And what was that, exactly? Here's NOAA:

"You had a number of things occurring that by themselves were just astounding," said Nate Mantua, an atmospheric scientist at NOAA Fisheries' Southwest Fisheries Science Center. "When you put it all together you could hardly believe it."

In addition to abnormalities with regards to marine wildlife - like, "subtropical species such as tuna and swordfish appeared hundreds of miles beyond their typical range" - the heatwave of 2015 was one for the books. And this next one could be bigger.

NOAA added:

"It was unlike any the West Coast had ever experienced before. Starting in the fall of 2013, a ridge of high pressure dampened the normal winter winds across the eastern Pacific Ocean. The sun warmed the sea surface into an ever-expanding hot spot that soon became known as 'the Blob.'"

Stay tuned. Could be a lot of action this summer season on the West Coast.