Off the wire
• Beijing makes emergency response on worst smog pollution day  • Chinese table tennis legend Deng appointed adjunct professor  • Japan reaches annual target of 1 million foreign visitors arriving by cruise ship  • Roundup: S.Korean shares fall on uncertainties over oil price  • English Hall-of-Famer Sun joins Chinese 2nd flight league  • Chinese shares close lower Tuesday  • China-Europe cargo train service to become busier  • Treasure from China's architecture legend family unveiled in exhibition in Canberra  • Colombia's FARC asks Red Cross for help to free kidnapped soldier  • S.Korea to provide 1 mln eco-friendly cars by 2020  
You are here: 　 Home

El Nino near peak intensity: Australian weather bureau

Xinhua, December 8, 2015 Adjust font size:

The current El Nino weather hitting Australia and the South Pacific, described as "Godzilla" is near its peak intensity though there are signs of easing, Australian weather authorities said.

Sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean remain at near record levels indicated the 2015 event is likely to be one of the three strongest events over the past 50 years, Australia's Bureau of Meteorology said on Tuesday.

"Presently, several key indicators fall short of their 1997-98 and 1982-83 values, both in the ocean (e.g. sub-surface temperatures, which have peaked around +8 degrees Celsius this year, compared to +12 degrees Celsius in 1997-98), and the atmosphere," the bureau said in a statement.

Despite high sea surface temperatures, some El Nino indicators such as the Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) are showing signs of easing, however the weather system is likely to persist well into 2016. Endit