El Niño looks to reach an intensity unprecedented in recorded history.
\n\nCharacterized by warmer than normal sea surface temperatures in the equatorial Pacific, El Niño occurs every few years. Meteorological agencies and researchers around the world are on high alert because when the heat stored in the ocean is released into the atmosphere, it triggers a chain reaction that affects rainfall, temperatures, and even hurricane activity around the world.
\n\nThis year’s El Niño has gained strength at an exceptional speed, and it will wreak havoc on everything from fisheries to ski seasons. Not all impacts are bad—the parched Southwest, for example, is likely to see more winter precipitation—but anticipating them is the key to being prepared.
\n\nWhat exactly is happening now, and what might happen in the coming months? Read on to understand what El Niño is, why this one might be a super El Niño, and where its impacts will be most acutely felt.
\n\nDeclaring El Niño requires meeting a certain threshold of oceanic heat in the Pacific. Specifically, a region known as NINO3.4. It’s an area that sits between NINO3 and NINO 4 if you want to geek out even more. In plain language, it’s a region in…
Original source: https://www.wired.com/