health
Prepare for imminent return of El Niño, UN warns
UN agency predicts phenomenon that supercharges weather extremes has 80% chance of forming before September
TL;DR
- El Niño has an 80% chance of forming before September and a 90% chance before November.
- The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) projects El Niño to be at least moderate in strength, possibly strong.
- El Niño conditions are expected to worsen global warming and lead to extreme weather events, including increased rainfall and drought.
- Specific regions are associated with heavier rain (South America, southern US, Horn of Africa, central Asia) or drier conditions (Central America, northern South America, Caribbean, Australia, Indonesia, parts of south Asia).
- El Niño can influence hurricane formation in the Pacific and Atlantic oceans.
- The UN urges immediate climate action, focusing on ending fossil fuel dependency, accelerating renewables, and enhancing early-warning systems.