Scientists have warned that the loss of ice in the Arctic will cause stronger and more frequent El Niño events

El Niño is a climatic phenomenon characterized by “anomalous heating of surface waters in the central-eastern sector of the Pacific Ocean, predominantly in the equatorial belt,” as the Portuguese Institute of the Seas and Atmospheres (IPMA) explains. Thus, it causes periods of drought or severe drought in this region, which usually occur every four years and last between six to 15 months.

Currently, A new scientific study was published in August in the journal Nature.the loss of arctic sea ice, at the planet’s north pole, “could be a key component driving significantly the frequency of strong El Niño events.”

Scientists explain that “the Arctic sea ice cover has been decreasing every month since the early 1950s,” and during each summer during that period, the ice area has shrunk by 50% in a row, without the ability to recover. Models predict that before 2050 the Arctic ice cover will completely disappear in the warmer months of the year.

Experts acknowledge that “it remains unclear how a decline in Arctic sea ice might influence the occurrence of a strong El Niño, a notable way of climate variability with global influences.” However, they argue that “as ice loss continues and the Arctic becomes seasonally ice-free, the frequency of strong El Niño events increases by more than a third.”

It is estimated that between 37% and 48% of the strong El Niño that will occur by the end of the 21st century will be attributed to the melting in the Arctic. The loss of surface ice in the Arctic directly affects this oceanic and atmospheric phenomenon, and can increase the frequency and magnitude of weather conditions that lead to droughts, floods and powerful storms.

Consequently, “strong El Niño events are becoming more frequent, presumably with devastating effects across the planet,” the scientists warn.

Therefore, the study warns that the higher the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the greater the global warming, the greater the level of melt in the Arctic, and finally, the more destructive and numerous the El Niño phenomenon, which will lead to severe consequences for the inhabitants of the Pacific Ocean, which are likely to Too much to branch out, perhaps with unexpected effects, all over the world.