What is 'El Niño'?

'El Niño, which means 'the Christ Child' in Spanish, refers to a  disturbance in the Ocean current, which runs off the coast of Peru and which occurs every 3-8 years around Christmas. When distributed, the cold Humboldt current, which flows along the western coast of South America towards the north, is pushed back by warm water masses from southeast Asia. 

No one knows why this happens. The winds blowing over the Pacific also change dramatically during this disturbance; as a result, heavy rainfall and flooding Occurs in places that were earlier dry, while the hot and moist
regions experience such completely dry spells that fertile land dries up, crops wither, and people starve.