NOAA says El Nino may intensify, impacting India's monsoon rains
NOAA announced last week that _ El Nino_ could intensify in the Pacific, and it could be one of the most intense we've seen.
For India, this usually means hotter weather and weaker monsoon rains, so less relief from the summer heat.
_ El Nino_ is part of a climate cycle called ENSO, which also includes La Nina (the rainy, cooler phase) and a neutral phase.
This whole cycle pops up every few years, but scientists are still figuring out exactly why.
Weaker trade winds reduce India's rainfall
During El Nino, trade winds lose their strength and can't push warm ocean water west like usual.
That extra warmth in the Pacific messes with air patterns, so places like India end up with less rain.
As M Ravichandran, former secretary at India's Ministry of Earth Sciences, explained, this warming changes air circulation patterns and reduces rainfall in regions like India.