Geneva, Switzerland: There is more than a 50% chance of La Nina developing in the next three months, the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) said on Wednesday, but if it does it will be relatively weak and short-lived.
The La Nina pattern involves the cooling of ocean surface temperatures and could break a spell of high temperatures that are set to make 2024 the world’s warmest since records began.
Forecasts show that there is a 55% likelihood of a transition to La Nina between December 2024 and February 2025, the WMO said in a statement sent to journalists. This was down from a forecast 60% possibility from the WMO in September.
“Even if a La Nina event does emerge, its short-term cooling impact will be insufficient to counterbalance the warming effect of record heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere,” WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo said.