El-Nino effect

El-Nino (Means Christ Child) effect refers to the warming of the surface water of East Pacific Ocean and relative cooling of Indian Ocean, thereby causing low pressure and high pressure respectively in those regions. 

Typically, this anomaly happens at irregular intervals of two to seven years, and lasts nine months to two years. Its immediate effects are felt as unusual heavy downpour along the Chile and Peru coast and also in the desert of Atacama resulting into flood, whereas, it results into weakening of Monsoon in Indian Ocean region due to ENSO (El-Nino Southern Oscillation). Areas west of Japan and Korea tend to experience much fewer tropical cyclones impact during El Nino and neutral years. The tropical Atlantic Ocean experiences depressed activity due to increased vertical wind shear across the region during El Nino years. 

Most of the recorded East Pacific category 5 hurricanes occur during El Nino years in clusters. Winters, during the El Nino effect, are warmer and drier than average in the Northwest, northern Midwest, and northern Mideast United States, thus these regions experience reduced snowfalls. Direct effects of El Nino resulting in drier conditions occur in parts of Southeast Asia and Northern Australia, increasing bush fires, worsening haze, and decreasing air quality dramatically. El Nino’s effects on Europe appear to be strongest in winter and make the region colder. 

As warm water spreads from the west Pacific and the Indian Ocean to the east Pacific, it takes the rain with it, causing extensive drought in the western Pacific and rainfall in the normally dry eastern Pacific.