Warnings have been issued that the El Niño developing in the Pacific Ocean is highly likely to become one of the strongest on record, which could make next year the hottest year in global history.

Adam Scaife, head of long-range forecasting at the UK Met Office, told the BBC on the 20th local time that he has "never seen such a strong El Niño signal."

He emphasized that if this El Niño is compounded by the impacts of human-induced climate change, 2027 is highly likely to become the hottest year on record.

El Niño is a phenomenon where sea surface temperatures near the equator rise above normal, causing significant shifts in weather patterns. It occurs in cycles of about two to seven years and lasts for a year.

When El Niño occurs, the trade winds blowing from east to west across the Pacific weaken or change direction, causing warm seawater to move eastward.

During this process, heat from the ocean is released into the atmosphere, altering global temperatures and precipitation patterns.

El Niño is pointed to as the cause of extreme weather events in various parts of the world.

Already, India is receiving less rainfall than usual despite being in its monsoon (rainy) season, and while it is the hurricane season in the Atlantic and Caribbean, hurricane activity has been relatively quiet due to changing wind patterns.

The UK Met Office stated that current sea surface temperatures are more than 2°C (36°F) higher than normal and predicted that they could rise to 3°C (37°F) above normal in the second half of this year when El Niño peaks.

Some scientists also suggest that sea surface temperatures could rise up to 4°C (39°F) above normal.

If sea surface temperatures rise as observed, this would be the most powerful El Niño phenomenon since the 19th century.

Dr. Nick Dunstone of the UK Met Office projected that the record-high winter temperatures caused by El Niño could lead to a rise in the global average temperature the following year, suggesting that next year could surpass 2024 to become the hottest year.

(Photo: Capture from Yonhap News TV, Yonhap News)