Taiwan is likely to see a warm autumn with less rain due to the effect of a super El Nino. That’s the word from the Central Weather Bureau on Tuesday. El Niño is an occasional warming of the Pacific waters around the equator which can change weather patterns around the world.
The bureau said rising sea surface temperatures have reached two degrees Celsius in the tropical central and the eastern Pacific Ocean. That’s close to the level of a super El Nino reported 18 years ago.
Weather forecaster Cheng Ming-dean spoke about the El Nino effect on Taiwan’s weather.
Cheng said, “El Nino could affect [Taiwan] the strongest in the winter or even early next year and its strength is likely to increase. Fewer typhoons are likely to hit Taiwan and chances are there would be one at the most. Taiwan should see warmer weather with less rain in the autumn.”
He also said the El Nino effect cannot be ignored. Drought and flash flooding due to an El Nino in 1982 almost collapsed the global animal husbandry industry. Many areas in Taiwan were also flooded due to heavy rain.