El Nino breaks Pacific temperature record as weather pattern intensifies

• An intensifying El Nino broke a temperature record in a key zone of the Pacific in September, the EU's climate monitor said Monday, in another sign the weather pattern is gaining exceptional strength.
• Global forecasters have been warning for months that this El Nino would likely become the strongest ever observed and the latest record has tumbled even before the episode's expected peak later this year.
• The warming phase of a natural climate cycle, El Nino raises sea temperatures in the tropical Pacific, triggering changes in weather that can increase the risk of drought and flooding, and exace