Steamed up boffins have warned that a Super El Niño event could blast Britain with record-breaking temperatures over the coming months, as the Daily Star revealed this week. The natural weather phenomenon sees heat from the tropical Pacific push up global temperatures and this year could see one of the strongest ever.
The World Meteorological Organisation said there is an 80% chance of it happening before September and a 90% chance of persisting until November.
The experts have observed evidence which suggests it is likely to strengthen as 2026 rumbles on, which will drive much more extreme weather around the whole world.
Several forecasts from national weather agencies suggest it could end up as one of the strongest ever recorded – a possible so-called “super” El Niño. Here are 10 hot facts about it, including how it could even affect boobies…
1. El Niño means ‘The Boy’ in Spanish and was first coined in 1892 when Peruvian naval captain Camillo Carillo noted that sailors dubbed a warm south flowing current as El Niño, referring to Jesus, as it usually happened around Christmas.
2. Now officially known as El Niño Southern Oscillation it sees changes in winds lead to a sea surface temperature rise in the tropical Pacific Ocean over the course of a year. It occurs several times every decade and includes an opposite phase known as La Niña (The Girl) when temperatures cool.
3. It affects climate patterns around the world, causing some places to be drier and others to be wetter. El Niño can lead to droughts in Australia, wildfires in the Amazon, harvest failures in Africa and flooding in the US (though fewer tornadoes).
4. El Niño has been linked to increasing the risk of mosquito-borne epidemics like malaria and it can hit fish populations, causing birds like Peruvian boobies to migrate to places like Panama where they wouldn’t normally be found.
5. Climate change from a Super El Niño is reckoned to have caused the collapse of the ancient Moche civilisation in Peru. A study found civil wars were more likely after an El Niño and one led to poor harvests in Europe in the 18th century which helped trigger the French Revolution.
6. El Niño can give rise to terrible famines. One super event in the 1870s ended up causing food shortages that led to 18 million dead across India and China.
7. The 1982-1983 El Niño event was one of the worst on record causing £10billion worth of damage. This year’s may push up food prices in the UK.
8. Pity poor Al Niño. In 1997-1998 there was record rainfall in California and when the effect was put down to El Niño, confused folk started bombarding the local with phone calls to complain.
9. Some scientists believe that El Niño events are becoming more frequent and stronger. Its effects are made worse by man-made climate change.
10. This year’s event is being dubbed the ‘Godzilla El Niño’ as data suggests it could be very powerful with one US meteorologist saying: “I think we’re going to see weather events that we’ve never seen in modern history before.”