According to experts from the United Nations World Meteorological Organization, El Niño warming of the Pacific Ocean, which has contributed to a peak in global temperatures, will gradually transition to cooling phase opposite, with the arrival of the phenomenon known as La Niña.
But what is it and what consequences will it have in Italy and Europe?
This event indicates a cooling of the temperature of the surface waters of the central and eastern Pacific Ocean which frequently influences the climate of our planet, with various repercussions also in Europe and Italy.
Since June, sea surface temperatures have been well below climate averages in most of the equatorial Pacific Ocean. This causes increased rainfall in Southeast Asia, parts of Africa, Brazil and Australia, but also droughts in the western Americas, the Gulf of Mexico and northeast Africa.
Not only that, one of the most dangerous consequences of La Niña in the world is linked to the occurrence of frequent storms in the Atlantic sector. In fact, it generates more favorable conditions for the formation of hurricanes in the central Atlantic basin. The potential consequences that also closely concern our Italy. The risk is that of having extreme events such as storms and in the most exceptional cases flash floods which usually affect narrow areas of territory, as happened dramatically in Tuscany and Romagna.
Despite an increase in extreme weather events, this it doesn’t mean that summer will be cool, on the contrary. Central European projections for the summer quarter indicate the possibility of very high temperaturesabruptly interrupted by thunderstorm phenomena associated with La Niña. In conclusion, we could have a very hot summer, characterized by long phases of African high pressure, however frequently interrupted by dangerous intense storms, especially in the Central-Northern regions.
