WMO Confirms El Niño Return This Summer, Warns of Record Heat Until November
The WMO confirmed El Niño's return this summer, warning of record heat and extreme weather until November. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for urgent climate action, as El Niño will intensify human-caused global heating. The event, with 90 percent certainty, demands preparation for severe impacts globally.
The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) has confirmed the return of El Niño this summer, increasing the risk of record-breaking heat and extreme weather events until at least November. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stated this event «will pour fuel on the fire of a warming world», noting its past deadly conditions.
El Niño is a natural climate pattern linked to temporary increases in tropical Pacific sea temperatures, altering global weather. It intensifies human-caused global heating, leading to more severe droughts, floods, and heat. WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo urged governments and humanitarian organizations to prepare for a potentially strong El Niño, which will exacerbate drought, heavy rainfall, and heatwaves on land and in the ocean. The 2023-2024 El Niño was among the five strongest on record and contributed to 2024's global temperature records.
The WMO forecasts nearly universal dominance of above-normal temperatures globally, with impacts potentially most severe in the Southern Hemisphere. Ireland could experience a lack of rainfall in the latter half of the year. Guterres called for urgent climate action, including a rapid end to fossil fuels and an accelerated shift to renewable energy, stating El Niño's arrival with 90 percent certainty demands a response equal to the crisis.
Tropical Pacific sea temperatures are being fed by unusually warm subsurface conditions, exceeding six degrees above average. El Niño typically occurs every two to seven years, lasting nine to 12 months, but its heat can persist and break records into a second year.