Met Office warns of 'Godzilla' super El Nino storms with weeks to go until peak

Met Office warns of 'Godzilla' super El Nino storms with weeks to go until peak The current El Nino has already reached record-breaking levels weeks before it is to peak, and could bring storms to the UK throughout autumn and winter The current El Nino weather front has already reached record-breaking levels weeks before it is to peak, the Met Office has said. The phenomenon is set to have “far-reaching” impacts on weather patterns around the world and bring storms to the UK. Experts at the Met Office have labelled this year's El Nino a “super” or even “Godzilla” El Nino and warned that the UK will see an increase in wet and stormy weather this year. The last time there was an El Nino of similar magnitude was 2015/16 when storm Desmond killed three people and destroyed over 5,000 homes. Professor Adam Scaife, head of long-range prediction at the Met Office, said: “We have been signalling for months that the developing El Nino will be an unprecedented event. The fact that it has already exceeded previous records, with several weeks to go before it peaks later this year, shows the enormity of this El Nino. “Scientists are still assessing whether the impacts will be in proportion to its magnitude, but we are already seeing expected effects worldwide.” For the UK that means an increased likelihood of wetter and stormier conditions during autumn and early winter, while later in the season El Nino is associated with an increased risk of cold snaps. The El Nino is a naturally-occurring climate phenomenon that develops in the Pacific Ocean when sea surface temperatures across the central and eastern equatorial Pacific become significantly warmer than average, changing atmospheric circulation patterns and affecting weather worldwide. Elsewhere, the Indian monsoon is running below normal, which is consistent with the developing El Nino, the Met Office said, while other areas such as southern Africa may be at increased risk of drought. The event will have huge impacts worldwide, affecting everything from agriculture to water, energy demand, wildfire risk and nature. The current El Nino is developing on top of human-caused climate change, which is mostly as a result of burning fossil fuels for power, heating, transport and industry and is causing temperature rises and more extreme weather, and is likely to push up global temperatures in 2027 to new record levels. Met Office science fellow Dr Nick Dunstone said: “During large El Nino events significantly more heat is released from the ocean to the atmosphere, leading to an increase in global average temperature, particularly in the calendar year following the winter peak of the El Nino. “Hence, 2027 is very likely to replace 2024 as the warmest year on record and be yet another year to temporarily exceed 1.5C above the pre-industrial period.” Global warming of 1.5C, even temporarily, is seen as a significant threshold, as countries have committed to try to curb climate change to that level over the long term, to prevent the worst impacts of climate-driven floods, droughts, melting ice and extreme heat and collapse of natural systems.