El Nino could be strongest in decades, UN warns
The World Meteorological Organization warns that the current El Nino event is on track to be the strongest in four decades. This phenomenon is expected to exacerbate global temperature records and increase the frequency of extreme weather events through 2027.
Why it matters
Understanding climate patterns is essential for disaster preparedness and managing risks in agriculture and infrastructure.
El Nino is forecast to be the strongest since comparable records began four decades ago, the United Nations' climate agency warned on Thursday (September 3, 2026), with the UN chief saying the world was in the "danger zone of extreme weather".
The weather phenomenon is set to become "very strong" in the months ahead and is near certain to persist through to February, the World Meteorological Organization said.
"If this trajectory continues, it may be stronger than anything since our monitoring began," WMO chief Celeste Saulo told reporters in Geneva.
El Nino will peak towards the end of this year — though its knock-on impacts for the climate will continue well into 2027, said the WMO.
El Nino warms surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean, bringing worldwide changes in winds, pressure and rainfall.
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