'One of the most rapid transitions that I've seen': NOAA forecaster on how this year's El…

Our warming world is set to enter an El Niño period as early as May, with a high likelihood of southern North America experiencing supercharged temperatures.One of the three phases of the natural El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) cycle in the Pacific Ocean, El Niño events occur every two to seven years, driving up sea surface temperatures across the Pacific Ocean and increasing global temperature. The last El Niño partially explains why 2024 was the hottest year on record.The knock-on effects of past El Niño events have been profound, with studies linking them to famine in Europe; civil wars in tropical regions; and droughts, floods and forest fires around the world.And there's a good chance this year's El Niño will be particularly intense, with current forecasts indicating a 25% chance that El Niño will be "very strong" by November ‪—‬ meaning sea surface temperatures will rise by 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit (2 degrees Celsius) above average.To get a better idea of what the upcoming El Niño will look like and what it could mean for Earth's climate and weather, Live Science spoke with Nathaniel Johnson, a research meteorologist and member of the ENSO seasonal forecast team at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric