El Niño massive heatwave is coming that could ‘get dire very quickly’ | World | News
A powerful El Niño has officially begun with scientists warning extreme weather could “get dire very quickly”. The phenomenon refers to a natural Pacific weather pattern that pushes up global temperatures. The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has declared that El Niño conditions are now under way in the tropical Pacific, with sea surface temperatures having risen sharply in recent months.
In the UK, El Niño could potentially tilt the odds towards a mild start and cold end to winter. Clark University climate scientist Abby Frazier explained that the warm, deep waters of an El Niño introduce “a lot of extra heat to the surface, fueling a lot of extreme events for a lot of places around the world.”
She cautioned that, particularly in the Pacific, “it can get dire very quickly.”
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres echoed this urgency, describing El Nino as an “urgent climate warning” and stating that “El Nino conditions will pour fuel on the fire of a warming world.”
In their official announcement on Thursday, NOAA said: “El Niño conditions are present and expected to strengthen into the Northern Hemisphere winter 2026-27.”
Climate scientists fear this frequent weather event will become a “Godzilla” or “Super El Niño” by the end of the year, meaning sea surface temperatures rising above normal temperatures.
A very strong El Niño typically lifts global air temperatures by around 0.2C, releasing heat stored in the ocean into the atmosphere. That extra blast now lands on a world that is already setting records.
The year 2024 – the warmest on record – was boosted by an El Niño that was not even especially strong.
Mohamed Adow, director of campaign group Power Shift Africa, said:”An El Niño declaration is not just another weather forecast – for millions of people it is a deadly siren to be feared,” said Mohamed Adow, director of campaign group Power Shift Africa.
“It means failed rains, dying crops, rising food prices, and families pushed to the edge yet again. In East Africa especially, this will land on communities already battered by droughts and floods in recent years.”
