"El Ni?o Driving Extreme Weather Like Heatwaves and Floods to Persist Until April Next Year"

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has forecasted that the El Ni?o phenomenon will persist until April next year.

Citizens visiting the indoor exhibition hall of the National Daegu Science Museum are observing the SOS system that represents the El Ni?o phenomenon amid the climate crisis. / Photo by Yonhap News

On the 8th (local time), WMO stated in a press release, "El Ni?o, which rapidly developed from July to August this year, reached a moderate intensity around September, and it is highly likely to peak in intensity between November this year and January next year."

The El Ni?o phenomenon refers to an abnormal rise in sea surface temperatures in the eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean. The opposite phenomenon, La Ni?a, partially suppresses global temperature rise, but El Ni?o accelerates warming. It is also identified as a cause of various weather anomalies such as heatwaves, floods, and droughts.

WMO predicted, "There is a 90% probability that El Ni?o will persist through this winter, and its strength is expected to gradually decrease in the Northern Hemisphere by spring next year," adding, "During this period, extreme weather and climate events such as heatwaves and floods will intensify, and temperatures on both land and oceans are expected to surge."

In fact, July this year, when La Ni?a dissipated and El Ni?o began, was recorded as the hottest month on Earth since observations and records started in 1940. August was the second hottest month following July.

Petteri Taalas, Secretary-General of the WMO, said, "The impact of El Ni?o on global temperatures generally worsens in the second year after its onset, so next year could be warmer than this year, which set the record for the warmest Earth temperature," adding, "This is why efforts to save lives and minimize economic losses must continue."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.