Onward! Our next order of business is to bid adieu to La Niña, as the sea surface temperature in the tropical Pacific returned to neutral conditions in April—that is, within 0.5°C of the long-term average.
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Onward! Our next order of business is to bid adieu to La Niña, as the sea surface temperature in the tropical Pacific returned to neutral conditions in April—that is, within 0.5°C of the long-term average.
The temperature of the water below the surface remained above-average, as the large area of warmer-than-average subsurface waters continued to move slowly to the east (a downwelling Kelvin wave). This warm area will continue to erode the remaining cooler surface waters over the next few months.
The tropical atmosphere is also looking mostly neutral. Rainfall over Indonesia was below average, and the near-surface winds were close to average, as La Niña’s strengthened Walker circulation faded.
Let’s look back on the past few months, to see how much February–April global temperature and rain patterns reflected those expected (temperature, rain) during La Niña! The maps linked here show both the changes expected during ENSO and the observed temperature trends, and the combination of the two.
Continue reading at NOAA.
Image via NOAA.
