A chaotic climate force known to boost hurricanes, known as El Niño, may affect many regions, according to a story from USA TODAY. This force is coming “soon” and it could reach “very strong” levels later this year, according to a May 14 forecast released by climate scientists from NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center.
How will Ohio be affected? Here is what we know.
What is El Niño?
El Niño is a natural climate pattern in which surface sea water temperatures in the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean are warmer than average.
Its name means the Little Boy, or Christ Child in Spanish. El Niño was originally recognized by fishermen off the coast of South America in the 1600s with the appearance of unusually warm water in the Pacific Ocean around Christmas.
The entire natural climate cycle is officially known as El Niño – Southern Oscillation, called ENSO by scientists. The cycle swings between warmer and cooler seawater in a region along the equator in the tropical Pacific. La Niña is marked by cooler-than-average ocean water in the region.
Will El Niño affect Ohio? Will Ohio see hurricanes?
As of now, Ohio has not been reported to be affected by El Niño in the coming months.
According to the World Meteorological Organization, El Niño is typically associated with increased rainfall in parts of southern South America, the southern United States, the Horn of Africa, and central Asia, and drought over Australia, Indonesia, and parts of southern Asia.
El Niño tends to supercharge hurricane seasons in the Pacific Ocean, including the central and eastern Pacific basins, and may affect Hawaii, but most Pacific storms don’t make landfall. Only about a quarter of eastern Pacific hurricanes and tropical storms ever make landfall — most curve west and stay out at sea.
When will El Niño emerge?
NOAA’s forecast said that El Niño is likely to emerge soon (with an 82% chance the next 2-3 months) and continue through the Northern Hemisphere winter of 2026-27 (a 96% chance by December 2026 – February 2027).
Also, even if the strongest part of the El Niño doesn’t arrive until the end of the year, it could still be strong enough during the hurricane season (June-November) to impact the number of storms that form in both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: How will El Niño affect Ohio? Weather pattern boosts hurricanes, rain
Reporting by Doyle Rice and Mariyam Muhammad, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
