It’s an El Niño year, and NOAA’s weather scientists in the USA have predicted that this year El Niño could become “very strong”, with significant impacts on global weather and climate. Some reports have predicted a “super El Niño”.
Typically, El Niño brings flooding and high temperatures to the arid northern west coast of South America, alongside severe droughts in the central Andes; hotter, wetter weather to the southern and western USA; shifts in the jet stream; and changes to the weather elsewhere. It is expected to strengthen through the year and peak over winter.
But first, what is El Niño?
The effect of El Niño on the climate over the USA. El Niño typically starts around June and peaks in late December. Image: NOAA
What is El Niño?
The El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is arguably Earth’s most influential climate driver. Cycles of unusually warm and cool water in the...
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