The North Sea was warmer in 2023 than at any time since records began, according to the Helgoland Biological Station of the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) in the German port of Bremerhaven. Measurements show the average water temperature in 2023 was just under 11.9 degrees Celsius, the institute said. THis was the highest temperature recorded since the Helgoland Reede long-term data series began in 1962. The high temperatures are a consequence of climate change and could have significant consequences for the maritime ecosystem, it said. The scientists have also recorded further high temperatur…