Scientists have warned - for years - of rising global temperatures and melting ice sheets.

But on Thursday, scientists announced it's happening faster than predicted: 2018 was the warmest year on record for the oceans.

That's according to a report published in the journal Science, by authors in China and the U.S. The report claims oceans are heating up as much as 40 percent faster than what a U.N.

Panel determined five years ago.

Scientists say the warming seas are damaging coral reefs and marine life, and forcing fish to find deeper and colder waters… wrecking havoc on the underwater ecosystem.

Lobster catches, for example, have collapsed in Connecticut and Rhode Island… and now Maine fishermen are cashing in, as the crustaceans move north.

But scientists say that boom will be short-lived as lobsters continue on to Canada.

Greenhouse gases warm the air, and according to scientists, that heat gets absorbed by oceans..

And there's no signs of it slowing down.

In fact, they say records for ocean warming have been broken almost yearly since 2000.