1. Read the webpage about El Niño. What is it and what effects can it have?
(Đọc một trang web về El Niño. Đó là gì và tác động nó có thể gây ra?)
El Niño
What is it?
El Niño is part of a phenomenon called El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO). El Niño happens when the strong ocean winds decrease and the temperature of the ocean becomes unusually warm. The name comes from the Spanish for "child" and refers to the baby Jesus, because it often happens around Christmas. El Niño has occurred for at least the last 300 years, and it lasts between 9 months and 2 years. They occur approximately every 2-7 years.
Causes and effects
Scientists are not sure what causes El Niño, but there are various theories. One theory is that strong Pacific winds create a big area of warm water in the west. If the winds suddenly disappear, the warm water quickly moves to the east and causes El Niño. Another theory is that volcanic activity in the tropics causes it.
El Niño has a big impact on the Pacific region and affects weather all over the world. It can cause floods in some countries (such as Peru and Ecuador), but very dry conditions, forest fires and drought in others (south-east Asia and Australia). El Niño can cause typhoons and hurricanes. El Niño also affects marine ecosystems because the warm water is poor in nutrients and cannot sustain big fish populations. This causes problems for the Pacific fishing industry.
El Niño is a weather phenomenon which happens when the strong ocean winds decrease and the temperature of the ocean becomes unsually warm. (El Nino là một hiện tượng thời tiết xảy ra khi lượng gió mạnh ở đại dương giảm và nhiệt độ tại đại dương trở nên ấm một cách bất thường)
Its effects: (Hiệu ứng)
- cause floods in some countries (such as Peru and Ecuador) (gây ra lũ lụt ở một vài quốc gia (như Peru và Ecuador))
- cause dry conditions, forest fires and drought in others (south-east Asia and Australia) (gây ra khí hậu rất khô hạn, cháy rừng và hạn hán ở những nơi khác (Đông Nam Á và Úc)
- cause typhoons and hurricanes (gây ra bão)
- affect marine ecosystems because the warm water is poor in nutrients and cannot sustain big fish populations. (cũng gây ảnh hưởng đến hệ sinh thái dưới biển vì dòng nước ấm nghèo dinh dưỡng và không thể chịu đựng số lượng cá lớn.)
- cause problems for the Pacific fishing industry (gây ra vấn đề cho ngành đánh bắt cá ở biển Thái Bình Dương.)