Copernicus Marine Service closed April 2026 as the second-warmest April on record for the global ocean — mean sea surface temperature 21.08°C, only 0.02°C below April 2024's record. [1] The equatorial Pacific (30°S-30°N) hit 26.99°C, the warmest April there ever recorded, surpassing 2017's 26.86°C; 12% of the central Pacific reached record-breaking April SST and 60% ranked within the ten warmest. [1][2] Yesterday's paper carried the calendar tightening to 26 days from hurricane-season open as the preseason cones disagree by a factor of two; today the equatorial Pacific record is the structural reading. ENSO conditions are currently neutral; ECMWF and the Copernicus Climate Change Service forecast a transition to El Niño in the second half of 2026, with persistent multi-year marine heatwaves still active across the Pacific basin. [2] The hurricane question is whether warm-ocean fuel beats El Niño shear; April just printed warmer fuel.

-- DARA OSEI, London