Berkeley Earth Report: 2025 recorded as warmest La Niña year globally

A Berkeley Earth report records 2025 as the warmest La Niña year globally. This is relevant now because La Niña is the cooler phase of the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and typically has a cooling effect on global temperatures.

El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and India-linked Impact:

Dimension	Key Details
ENSO	Recurring natural phenomenon characterised by fluctuating ocean temperatures in the equatorial Pacific, coupled with changes in the atmosphere.
ENSO	El Niño and La Niña are the oceanic components, while the Southern Oscillation is the atmospheric counterpart of the system.
La Niña phase	This ENSO cold phase strengthens trade winds, pushes warm water toward Asia, and brings cold water to the eastern Pacific.
La Niña - impact on India	Monsoon brings helpful rainfall for agriculture, winter causes colder-than-normal conditions and frequent cold waves in northern India, and extreme events raise the risk of floods and stronger cyclones in the Bay of Bengal.
El Niño phase	This warm phase of ENSO occurs when trade winds weaken, allowing warm water to move toward South America.
El Niño - impact on India	Weakened monsoon can cause below-normal rainfall or droughts, reducing crop yields and raising food prices, while harsher summers increase heat stress.