Major new UN report says the Amazon is about to enter a dangerous five-year dry spell
The United Nations has just produced an incredibly worrying report, outlining the state of the climate for the next five years and indicating that the Amazon in particular could be faced with a potentially catastrophic dry spell.
You don't need to be an expert on the climate to notice alarming trends emerging across the last few years, as global warming is having an unprecedented impact on temperatures and conditions across the Earth.
Scientists have expressed major warnings regarding the continuously rising sea level as that could spell disaster in the near future for many major coastal cities, and only in the last week has much of the northern hemisphere experienced record-breaking heat that only looks to get worse with an impending 'super' El Niño in the summer.
Things certainly don't look great when looking at predicted data for the next five years either, as a new report from the United Nations (UN) and World Meteorological Organization (WMO) spells danger for the world.
Average temperatures expected to break records
The report, which analyses predictions for the climate (encompassing temperatures and precipitation) across the period of 2026-2030, has outlined the incredibly high chance that most areas across the world will see record high temperatures and culminate to achieve the warmest year on record.
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"Annual global mean near-surface temperatures during 2026-2030 are predicted to range between 1.3°C and 1.9°C above the 1850-1900 average," the study outlines, illustrating a 91 per cent chance of this happening alongside an 86 per cent chance of achieving the hottest year on record.
One saving grace of sorts is the probability of average temperatures exceeding 2°C above the 1850-19000 average across an entire year, but with the upcoming El Niño already breaking expectations before it even hits, you never truly know how things will play out.
Dry-spell danger expected for the Amazon
Outside of the realm of temperatures, the report also indicates a worrying future for the Amazon and similar rainy areas across the world, forecasting anomaly-like behavior in the coming half decade.
"Predicted precipitation patterns for May-September 2026-2030 suggest that wet anomalies in the Sahel, northern Europe, Alaska and Siberia, and dry anomalies over the Amazon, are more likely in this season," the study declares.
This could have a significant impact on the future of the region's rainforests, as previous droughts have severely damaged the area and were previously expected to be 'one-off' events.
As reported by Space Daily, previous droughts in both 2005 and 2010 are now revealed to have had a significant carbon impact on the wider world, as trees in the rainforest died off.
If another 'once-in-100-years' drought happens in the next five years, this could create a vicious cycle where the rainforest's lowered climate protective benefits lead to further extreme weather, only exacerbating the problem even more.