{
  "id": 2520599,
  "title": "U.K. forecasts ‘biggest’ El Nino will smash records, spark hottest year",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/u-k-forecasts-biggest-el-nino-will-smash-records-spark-hottest-year",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-08-22T06:43:44.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Hindu - Sci-Tech",
    "slug": "the-hindu-sci-tech",
    "url": "https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/energy-and-environment/uk-forecasts-biggest-el-nino-will-smash-records-spark-hottest-year/article71376734.ece"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "The UK's national weather agency has predicted that this year's El Niño weather pattern will be the biggest in over a century. El Niño occurs when warming sea surface temperatures in the tropical eastern Pacific trigger worldwide changes in winds, atmospheric pressure, and rainfall, as well as higher global temperatures overall.\n\nAccording to Adam Scaife, head of long-range forecasting at the Met Office, the El Niño event is expected to peak at something over 3°C above the norm, which is unheard of in modern climate records. This would make 2027 the hottest year globally. The Pacific water is expected to heat up more than 3°C above the norm in the coming months, with temperatures currently running about 2.6°C above a rolling 30-year average.\n\nThe record-strength El Niño could intensify global warming and disrupt weather patterns. India may face additional pressure on the monsoon and farm output, while severe droughts are expected in places like South America and the West Pacific. The Met Office described the event as \"adding to the stresses of climate change\" following a summer of heat waves across Europe.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}