Climate change

Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi all recorded their all-time high August average temperatures, and the heat is expected to persist until the end of October.

"Hyperintensification" is a new word meteorologists are using to describe the rapid building of Hurricane Lee. Warmer oceans act as jet fuel for hurricanes.

After a record hot summer, warmer waters in the Gulf of Mexico fueled the intensity of Hurricane Idalia. It briefly reached Category 4 just before landfall.

The water's hypoxic zone — an area of low to no oxygen — is about 3,058 square miles. The "dead zone" can kill fish and marine life.

University of Miami scientists are trying to provide a genetic lifeline to Florida’s ailing reef, hoping to outpace a wave of lethal bleaching spreading from the Florida Keys.

The scorching waters could already be spelling trouble for vulnerable corals ahead of the hottest part of summer.

Water temperatures in the mid-90s (mid-30s Celsius) are threatening delicate coral reefs, depriving swimmers of cooling dips and adding a bit more ick to the state's already oppressive summer weather.

Efforts to establish protections for outdoor workers in Florida against the impacts of extreme heat have failed at the federal, state, and local levels.

It’s wildfire season in Florida and one of the biggest threats of climate change is the increased risk of fires across the Southeastern United States. Yet fire, when controlled, can actually help fight the very threat it poses.

Farmworker advocates are calling on the Florida Legislature to take up a bill that would protect outdoor workers in extreme heat.