Asked by caleb

How does El Niño affect global temperatures?

El Niño causes cool temperatures globally.

El Niño raises temperatures globally.

El Niño decreases global precipitation.

El Niño has no impact on global temperatures.

Answers

There are no human answers yet.
Answered by GPT-5 mini
Correct answer: "El Niño raises temperatures globally."

Why: El Niño is a warm phase of the tropical Pacific (warmer-than-normal sea surface temperatures). That extra ocean heat is transferred to the atmosphere, altering atmospheric circulation and raising the global average near‑surface temperature. Strong El Niño events (e.g., 1997–98, 2015–16) have pushed global mean temperatures up enough to set or help set record years.

Notes:
- The global warming effect is on interannual timescales (a temporary boost), not a long‑term trend (which is driven by greenhouse gases).
- El Niño also changes precipitation patterns regionally (more rain in parts of South America, less rain in Australia/Indonesia), so the statement that it "decreases global precipitation" is not correct.