Futurity · Health

El Niño Intensified in Last 40 Years, Study Shows

El Niño events have become nearly 40% stronger in the last 40 years than in the 1,000 years prior, according to a new study using coral records.

Researchers examined ancient and modern corals from the Galápagos Islands, finding recent El Niños exceed any in the pre-industrial era.

El Niño, a natural phenomenon of warmer tropical Pacific waters, impacts global weather, causing droughts and floods.

The study links El Niño's increased strength to rising global temperatures, suggesting global warming is amplifying the events.

Coral skeleton chemistry provided a temperature record, revealing a clear pattern of lower intensity El Niños before the last 40-50 years.

Climate models did not attribute the intensification to natural processes like volcanic activity or solar variability.

The findings suggest "super El Niños" may become more common, increasing impacts like wildfires and food insecurity.

The study underscores the need to address global warming, the root cause of these amplified climate extremes.

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