El Niño dries up city's monsoon after 29 years

The metropolis is experiencing its weakest monsoon in nearly three decades, with El Niño in the Pacific Ocean contributing to the subdued rainfall, while prospects of significant showers in September - the final month of the monsoon season - have also diminished.

El Niño is a climate pattern in which the surface waters of the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean become unusually warm. That warming disrupts normal atmospheric circulation and can shift weather patterns across the world.

According to the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), the chances of a significant weather system developing or affecting Karachi by the end of August are extremely low. Monsoon activity is also expected to remain limited during September.

The city's remaining hope for meaningful rainfall lies largely in the development of a low-pressure system or other significant weather activity over the Arabian Sea capable of pushing moisture towards Karachi and the coastal belt.

The current pattern is reminiscent of 1997, when the metropolis also experienced an exceptionally weak monsoon.

The PMD said El Niño was among the major factors behind the weak monsoon this year. The climate phenomenon is considered an important factor that can suppress monsoon activity across South Asia.

Seasonal forecasts issued before the onset of the monsoon had already indicated below-normal rainfall for Pakistan, particularly in southern parts of the country, including Sindh.