Study Finds El Niño Intensifying Due to Global Warming
8 sources across 6 countries
Who reported this
- Der Spiegel
- Sueddeutsche Zeitung
- CNN
- Associated Press
- El Espectador
- The Japan Times
- El Pais
- The Guardian
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- Centre-left
- Centre
- Centre-right
- Right
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A new study published in the journal Science indicates that El Niño events have become significantly more intense over the last 40 years compared to the previous millennium. Researchers from the University of Michigan and the University of California, Santa Barbara, analyzed the chemical composition of living and ancient coral fossils from the Galápagos Islands to reconstruct sea surface temperatures dating back 1,000 years. The findings show that El Niño events in the last four decades were approximately 36 to 40 percent stronger than those in the preindustrial period before 1850. This increase in intensity aligns with the rise in global temperatures caused by human activity and the burning of fossil fuels. Current forecasts suggest a high probability of a very strong event occurring through the end of the year and into early 2027, with some reports describing the current phenomenon as a super El Niño or a Godzilla event. These intensifying patterns are linked to severe weather disruptions worldwide, including droughts and wildfires in Indonesia, reduced water levels in the Panama Canal, and extreme weather in parts of India, Kenya, and Ethiopia. While some researchers note that further study is needed to formally attribute the shift solely to human activity, the data suggests that global warming is supercharging the natural phenomenon, which in turn further amplifies the global climate crisis.
How each side framed it
- Centre-left
- These outlets emphasized the urgency of the climate crisis and framed the findings as a call to abandon fossil fuels.
- Centre
- These outlets focused on the scientific findings and the methodology of the coral study without adding prescriptive policy language.
Sources
- Centre Associated Press: As super El Nino strengthens, study suggests that climate change is intensifying El Ninos - AP News
- Centre-left CNN: El Niño events are becoming stronger as the world warms
- Centre-left Der Spiegel: Super El Niño: The coming months will make the climate future of the Earth visible
- Centre-left El Espectador: El Niño has become more intense in the last 40 years than in the previous 1,000 years
- Centre-left El Pais: The Pacific records the most intense 'El Niño' in the last millennium due to climate change: "We are against the clock"
- Centre-left Sueddeutsche Zeitung: Climate Change: After the Super El Niño, the Mega El Niño?
- Centre-left The Guardian: El Niño climate patterns supercharged by burning of fossil fuels, study finds
- Centre The Japan Times: Corals show how El Nino is intensifying as the planet warms
100% of the statements in this article were traced back to the source articles listed above.