El Niño, a periodic weather pattern in the tropical Pacific Ocean, has officially begun and is forecast to intensify into a very strong or ‘Super’ El Niño. This may lead to major shifts in global weather patterns and an even hotter climate, according to a new report from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
Impacts on Global Weather
The NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center is giving this El Niño a 63% chance of becoming a ‘very strong’ event, one of the ‘largest El Niño events in the historical record going back to 1950.’ El Niño involves the transfer of a large amount of heat energy from the ocean to the atmosphere, which boosts global average surface temperatures on top of the human-caused warming trend from fossil fuel pollution.
El Niño tilts the odds in favor of certain weather and climate extremes, including heat waves, flooding, and droughts, depending on the location. In the US, its impacts are most evident during the winter months. Warmer-than-average conditions are typically seen from the northern US to western Canada and Alaska, although this doesn’t preclude periods of colder weather at times.
California could see more frequent atmospheric river events as the moisture-laden jet stream crashes ashore. The southern tier of the US is often wetter and cooler since a more active jet stream steers more storms over this region.
Economic and Environmental Impacts
Strong El Niños can reduce countries’ economic growth through disaster losses, food supply disruptions, and other effects. El Niño events can also lead to widespread marine heat waves and coral bleaching, giving corals’ sensitivity to higher ocean temperatures.
The marine heat waves themselves can also influence regional weather patterns. There is an extra dose of uncertainty about this Super El Niño’s impacts because this event is occurring at a time when the world is already much hotter than average due to global warming from fossil fuel pollution.
Original reporting: KRDO (Colorado Springs metro) — read the source article.
