NOAA and NASA satellites measured an average sea-surface temperature of 68.93 degrees Fahrenheit in the Gulf of Maine on Aug. 8, only 0.05 degrees below the all-time record high of 68.98 set in 2012. It is the epicenter of the U.S. lobster fishing industry, an important feeding ground for rare North Atlantic right whales .

Previously, regulators monitored the presence of certain toxins and shut down fishing when they exceeded safe limits.

Declining fertility and rising mortality, exacerbated by fishing industry, prompts experts to warn whales could be extinct by 2040

As the state’s shrimp fishery is closed for a fifth year, scientists blame climate change, shrimpers fret and locals mourn a beloved treat.

New data show the population of baby lobsters off New England is below average, raising concerns about the size of future commercial hauls of the valuable crustaceans as waters warm.