For climate scientists reviewing a Pacific Ocean temperature forecast map in November, a bright red, sideways “V”, thousands of kilometers long signaled disaster. Combined with La Nina cooling in the central and eastern Pacific, the V-shaped pattern of warm sea water, stretching from Australia’s east coast to the Philippines and back over the ocean north of Hawaii, indicated that halfway around the world in the Horn of Africa the upcoming March-May rainy season would likely fail. The scientists’ organization, called Famine Early Warning System Network or FEWS Net, sent out an alert with U.N., EU and African institutions, saying the “unprecedented” drought would likely “cause a perilous and disruptive humanitarian disaster”. If the warning is born out, it could push the region into its worst drought on record. Millions of people would struggle to feed themselves. Such warning systems are becoming increasingly essential as climate […]