What does a super El Niño forecast mean for the UK?
A super El Niño has continued to strengthen rapidly in the Pacific, bringing severe consequences for the UK warns MP.
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The UK has been battling one of its hottest summers on record as heatwaves, droughts and small rainfall impacts the environment and economy.
But it seems that's not the only weather and climate issue the country could be facing as a Labour MP has urged Prime Minister Andy Burnham to prepare for a super El Niño.
Meteorologists from the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) have been monitoring the El Niño, which is where surface waters in the Pacific Ocean become very warm, and are raising concerns it could develop to "super El Niño" status.
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Recently, Labour MP Chris Hinchliff for North East Hertfordshire has written to the Prime Minister to ask him to "take urgent action" over concerns for extended drought conditions and excessive rainfall.
What does a super El Niño forecast mean for the UK?
While the UK doesn't take on the direct impact of an El Niño, it can affect our seasons making winters colder and summers hotter.
With this in mind, Hinchcliffe is concerned about global food supplies and economies should this continue to develop.
He said: "This is an important moment to be emphasising the need for swift and decisive action, to improve the resilience of our country to extreme weather. We have farmers already ringing alarm bells around food shortages because of the impact on the harvest this year.
"I think it's clear for everyone to see that our country has a long way to go before it's properly adapted to the new climate reality that we face."
He also wrote: "Even smaller El Niño events have created enormous supply chain impacts, caused crop failures and rising food prices, wiping out hundreds of billions of dollars across the global economy."
He advises accelerating food security planning, reviewing resilience of infrastructure to extreme heat, urgently planting trees to help with possible flooding and implement hot weather conditions in schools and hospitals.
What are the chances of a super El Niño?
Experts are convinced a super El Niño will be justified soon as they see it continue to strengthen across the Pacific.
According to WMO, the latest data is indicating the El Niño is accelerating in that direction.
The UK last experienced a super El Niño in 2015 and typically happen every 10 to 20 years. A normal El Niño cycle occurs every two to seven years.