Super El Nino identified in September, China’s climate centre says
Sign up now: Get insights on Asia's fast-moving developments
People feed seagulls at the Xinghai Square, amid an orange alert for heatwave on Aug 7, in Dalian, Liaoning province, China.
PHOTO: REUTERS
- China’s National Climate Centre said a “super El Nino” formed in September after rapid Pacific warming from May to September met the extreme event criteria.
- The warm waters were strongest in the eastern equatorial Pacific, where temperatures were 3C above average, and the event may become the strongest since monitoring began.
- The UN said temperatures may reach a record 3.7C above normal from October to December, with risks of hotter global weather, drought and heavy rain.
AI generated
BEIJING - A super El Nino event officially formed in September, after rapid warming of the Pacific Ocean from May to September met the criteria for the extreme climate event, China’s National Climate Centre said.
This El Nino is forecast to become the strongest one since systemic monitoring of this climate pattern began, Chinese state news agency Xinhua quoted the NCC as saying.
Sea surface temperatures across most of the equatorial Pacific in September were higher than the average of the same period, the climate monitor and forecaster said.
The centre of the warm waters was located in the eastern equatorial Pacific, where surface temperatures exceeded the average by 3 deg Celsius, according to NCC data.
NCC chief forecaster, Zhao Junhu said surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific at the heart of the phenomenon were predicted to continue rising in the next three months, peaking in late autumn and early winter.
The UN weather body this week predicted those temperatures would be a record 3.7 deg Celsius above normal from October to December.
The El Nino weather phenomenon typically occurs every two to seven years, when weakening trade winds result in warmer waters in the eastern Pacific.
It tends to cause higher global temperatures and disrupt rainfall patterns across large regions, bringing drought to some areas and heavy rain to others. REUTERS