UN WARNS STRENGTHENING EL NIÑO WILL INTENSIFY GLOBAL HEAT CRISIS

UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned on Friday that a strengthening El Niño weather pattern is intensifying the global climate crisis and could drive record-breaking temperatures worldwide. Guterres stated that the phenomenon is "adding fuel to a planet already on fire" and pushing the world into "uncharted territory". He noted that Pacific waters driving the El Niño have never been this warm this early in the season, with sea-surface temperatures currently averaging 3°C above normal according to the World Meteorological Organisation.

The El Niño pattern warms surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean, triggering worldwide changes in winds, atmospheric pressure and rainfall patterns. Human-caused climate change can amplify El Niño's impacts because a warmer ocean and atmosphere increase the availability of energy and moisture for extreme weather events such as heat waves and heavy rainfall. The WMO's forecast indicates that through October, nearly every land mass on Earth is expected to be hotter than normal. Guterres cited the summer's record heat domes and wildfires in Spain, France and beyond as evidence of current conditions, describing them as "only a warm-up act".

Beyond heat alone, the risks include significant rainfall disruptions, according to Guterres. India's monsoon is running well below average, whilst hotter and drier conditions are forecast across Central America, the Caribbean, parts of South America, South Asia, the Southwest Pacific, Europe and Africa. The WMO warned on Friday that El Niño will intensify starting next month, with the organisation's outlook suggesting the pattern risks shattering seasonal temperature records across the globe.