Watch the video above: What exactly is an El Nino? Global News’ chief meteorologist Anthony Farnell explains.
TORONTO – By now you’ve heard that over the next few months we’re going to see the effects of a strong El Nino. But what does that mean?
READ MORE: Intensifying ‘El Nino’ has surprises in store for Canadian weather
El Nino, Spanish for “little boy” is a weather phenomenon generating from the Pacific Ocean. But its effects are felt around the globe.
There are benefits for some — like increased precipitation for California which has been experiencing a historic drought (though the consequences could result in flooding and landslides) or a milder winter across parts of Canada — but other consequences can be disastrous, like drought conditions in Australia and Africa, heavy rains along coastal areas of South America or a suppressed monsoon season in India, an area that depends on the annual event.
With a strong El Nino forecast — possibly to rival that of 1997-98 when eastern Ontario, parts of Quebec and Atlantic Canada experienced a devastating ice storm as a result — the next few months may have some interesting weather ahead, not just for Canadians but across the globe.
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