El Nino: experts react to record-breaking temperature rise

The developing El Niño in the Pacific Ocean has officially become the strongest such event on record, several months before its expected peak.

University of Reading climate experts have responded to the record temperature rise.

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Professor Richard Allan said: "All signs point to one of the strongest El Niño events on record and the extreme weather events unleashed across the globe will be further intensified by the human-caused warming of climate.

“The warming due to emissions of greenhouse gases is now so large it is even interfering with simple measures of El Niño, which sample how much warmer the central Pacific ocean is than average over a 6 million square kilometer box along the equator. Even correcting the El Niño index for this global warming signal, it will still be one of the biggest on record based on any measure.

“The raging El Niño is already sending global wind patterns out of kilter, beginning an onslaught of seasonal extremes across the globe. And the fact that the world has been heated by our emissions of greenhouse gases means that deluge, drought and heatwaves, where and when they form, will be more intense as an ever-thirstier atmosphere more rapidly saps water from one region and channels this stolen moisture into drenching storm systems elsewhere.

“There is nothing that can stop an El Niño, so increasing resilience to damage through preparations and forecasting is essential for vulnerable regions, as well as being ready for the inevitable disruption to economies across the world. Ultimately, the only sure-fire way of limiting the growing magnitude of weather extremes and rising sea levels is to ramp up collaborative efforts to transition to a cleaner, more efficient society that removes our dirty burden of greenhouse gas emissions to limit human caused climate change."

Dr Akshay Deoras said: “The current El Niño is still nowhere near its peak. Sea surface temperatures across the eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean continue to warm robustly, pushing the event into increasingly uncharted territory. That matters because tremendous heat and moisture will be transferred to the atmosphere over the next couple of months, helping to fuel heavier rainfall and other extreme weather events across the globe. The timing is particularly striking, as these natural El Niño influences are unfolding against a backdrop of human-driven global warming."