UN and scientists: El Niño has already broken all heat and intensity records in its early phase

The intensifying El Niño phenomenon has already shattered records for its strength in its early phase, prompting dire warnings from United Nations officials and scientists. They caution that this early intensity signals more extreme weather events to come as the phenomenon develops, likening it to "adding fuel to the fire" of a planet already grappling with a climate crisis.

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The key Pacific region used to measure El Niño's strength reached its warmest and most intense levels ever recorded this week - and this is in the 15th week since the meteorological phenomenon formed, which is an early stage of its development.

Key indicators in the Pacific Ocean, used to measure El Niño's force, have reached unprecedentedly warm and intense levels just 15 weeks after its formation, according to scientists at Columbia University. El Niño, a natural warming process in the Pacific near the equator that influences global weather patterns, is not expected to peak for several more months and is projected to last until spring 2027.

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Two months ago, I warned that El Niño was on our doorstep. Now it is in the house and has turned up the heating.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated that the world is already experiencing "a summer full of extremes," including record-breaking heat domes and apocalyptic wildfires. He emphasized that current conditions are "just the warming up," and as El Niño strengthens, it will further fuel the planet's crisis. Guterres declared, "We are in uncharted territory, and the climate crisis is accelerating."

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We are already going through a summer full of extremes - heat domes that break records, apocalyptic fires in Spain, France, elsewhere, thousands of lives lost from the heat.

While most computer models suggest El Niño will likely break all records by its peak, scientists note this is not guaranteed. The World Meteorological Organization, a UN agency, has warned of continued extreme heat, droughts, and heavy rainfall extending into the next year.

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However, according to the latest scientific data, this is just the warming up, and as El Niño strengthens, it will add fuel to the fire that the planet is already engulfed in.