Now Reading: El Niño strengthens, threatens crops, global temperatures
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El Niño strengthens, threatens crops, global temperatures
This year’s El Niño, expected to be the strongest in nearly 80 years of records, is already affecting weather across the globe. The Deccan Herald reports that parts of Panama have had…
The Story in Brief
This year’s El Niño, expected to be the strongest in nearly 80 years of records, is already affecting weather across the globe. The Deccan Herald reports that parts of Panama have had no major storm since early May, Ethiopia’s highlands are experiencing one of their driest summers in four decades, and India recorded its fifth-driest June since 1901.
Scientists say the event could lift global temperatures to record levels next year. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration estimates an 81% chance of “very strong” conditions by December. The UN World Food Program warns that El Niño could push nearly 50 million more people into acute hunger by year’s end.
The Indian Opinion
Talk of a ‘record-breaking’ El Niño sells clicks but overshadows a basic truth: the planet has survived strong El Niños before. The real concern is not the weather pattern itself but how little we have prepared for its compounding effects on monsoon-dependent farmers and canal operators. Watch whether India’s kharif sowing numbers recover by October. That single figure will tell us more than any forecast.
Source: deccanherald.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
