El Niño Watch 2015

The El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is a quasi-periodic fluctuation of ocean temperatures in the equatorial Pacific. The temperatures generally fluctuate between two states: warmer than normal central and eastern equatorial Pacific (El Niño) and cooler than normal central and eastern equatorial Pacific (La Niña). This animation illustrates the evolution of sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies (relative to the respective normal state) in the Pacific Ocean associated with the developing 2015 El Niño, the warm phase ENSO.

Data in Action: El Niño Watch: A Comparison of Current Conditions with Past Events

A major El Niño event is developing in the Equatorial Pacific Ocean. The current oceanic state in the Equatorial Pacific is compared with previous El Niño events to gain a potential sense about future development and related impacts. Changes in sea level can be used as an indicator of the changes in the heat content, and changes in sea surface temperature (SST) are indicative of the coupling between the ocean and the atmosphere from wind forcing.

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