El Niño brewing in Pacific raises prospect of record-breaking heat

Climactic event will almost certainly strengthen throughout the year, US climate scientists predict

Mild El Nino climatic conditions brewing in the Pacific Ocean will strengthen throughout the year, with an outside chance of a record-breaking event that will further turbocharge already sweltering temperatures around the globe, scientists have forecast.

Last month saw a weak" El Nino form, a periodic climatic event where the circulation of the equatorial Pacific Ocean shifts and its temperature rises, causing knock-on heat around the world, according to an update from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa).