From great white sharks around Quebec's Îles-de-la-Madeleine to lobsters conquering new territory, oceanographers say the warming of the Gulf of St. Lawrence is having an impact on the creatures that live in its unique ecosystem. Data from Fisheries and Oceans Canada show that deepwater temperatures have been increasing overall in the gulf since 2009. In 2022, gulf-wide average temperatures hit new record highs at depths of 150 to 300 metres, and passed the threshold of 7 C at 300 metres for the first time. Average monthly temperatures at the sea surface also set new records in August and September, the data showed.
Changes to Gulf Stream could mean colder summers, more intense storms in N.L., researcher says
A new study on the ocean's currents suggests the Gulf Stream, located 200 miles off the shores of Newfoundland and Labrador, may soon reach a tipping point that could impact climates around the world. The study, titled 'Observation-based early-warning signals for a collapse of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation', was published in the Nature Climate Change journal.