Temperatures to increase with return of El Nino

The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) said on Tuesday that temperatures are expected to hike in global regions amidst the return of the El Nino weather pattern in the tropical Pacific for the first time in seven years.

The world’s hottest year recorded, 2016, coincided with a strong El Nino, but the temperatures were fueled by climate change for years without the phenomenon, and the record is expected to be broken soon, said the WMO.

The WMO had previously stated that it is more likely for one of the next five years, or the five-year period as a whole, to be the warmest on record as a result of El Nino and anthropogenic global warming.

“To tell you whether it will be this year or next year is difficult, but what we know is that throughout the next five years, we are likely to have one of the warmest years on record,” said Wilfran Moufouma Okia, Head of Regional Climate Prediction Service at WMO.

The World Health Organisation had stated that it was preparing for an increased spread of viral diseases like dengue, Zika, and chikungunya, which are connected to El Nino.

“We can reasonably expect even an increase in infectious diseases because of the temperature,” said Maria Neira, Director for Environment, Climate Change, and Health at WHO.

El Nino, which is a warming of water surface temperatures in the eastern and central Pacific Ocean, is related to extreme weather conditions like tropical cyclones, heavy rainfall, and severe droughts.

During El Nino, which happens every two to seven years and can last from nine to 12 months, winds blowing along the equator slow down and warm water is pushed east, creating warmer surface ocean temperatures.

El Nino is associated with increased rainfall in southern South America, the southern US, the Horn of Africa, and Central Asia, and causes severe droughts in Australia, Indonesia, southern Asia, Central America, and northern South America.