Rare Train of Pacific Cyclones Fueled by Historic El Niño
NOAA says the rare cluster of Pacific cyclones could intensify rainfall and winds across the region as El Nino nears its peak.
- On Wednesday, September 2, 2026, a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellite image captured a rare train of three storms across the Pacific Ocean: Hurricane Lowell, Hurricane Karina, and Tropical Storm Marie.
- El Niño, the warming phase of the ENSO cycle, fuels these storms with warm waters; climate scientist Julia Cole of the University of Michigan told AFP a three-cyclone train is "definitely rare to see."
- Both Category 4 storms are anticipated to pass near Hawaii with potential for gusty trade winds and increased rainfall, while Tropical Storm Marie is "expected to become a hurricane later today," the National Hurricane Center said.
- This year's El Niño has a 69 percent chance of becoming the strongest on record, echoing 2015 when four cyclones including Hurricane Ignacio and Hurricane Jimena tracked across the Pacific simultaneously.
- Greenhouse gases hold more moisture, intensifying El Niño-linked rains; however, consensus remains limited on whether climate change triggers stronger El Niños, according to recent research published in Science.
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According to the World Meteorological Organization, the El Niño phenomenon is expected to be "very intense" over the next five months.
Three cyclones have been crossing the Pacific since Wednesday at the same time, as the United Nations anticipates a "very high intensity" El Niño for the coming months.
Two powerful hurricanes and a tropical storm that is intensifying have crossed the Pacific Ocean Wednesday, whose waters are heated by an unprecedented El Nino episode of intensity.
Two powerful hurricanes and a tropical storm are currently crossing the Pacific, a rare phenomenon favored by abnormally hot waters Two powerful hurricanes and a tropical storm that
Two hurricanes and an increasingly strong tropical storm crossed the Pacific Ocean on Wednesday, the waters of which are warmer due to the historical intensity of the El Niño weather phenomenon. Hurricane Lowell today reached category 5, the highest, as it moved westward, followed by Category 4 hurricane Karina, both of which must pass away from the Hawaiian coast, reported the United States National Hurricane Centre (NHC).
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