Tag: ENSO

A River Runs Through It: Predicting Floods in the Midwest

by | 12.7.2012 at 2:58pm | 1 Comment
Andy1

Focusing on the American Midwest, Andrew Robertson analyzes the relationships between floods, weather and climate patters throughout the 20th century.

Fears of a Double Dip…La Niña

by | 8.24.2011 at 8:45am | 1 Comment
Double Dip Graph2

You’d be forgiven for thinking its 2008 and not just because of the economic uncertainty. Is there a dreaded double dip La Niña in store, too?

Climate Forecasting: Oceans, Droughts, Climate Change and Other Tools of the Trade

by | 6.29.2011 at 12:02pm | 1 Comment
The map shows IRI's temperature forecast for July-August-September 2011. Red indicates areas with enhanced probability for above normal temperatures. Blue indicates areas with enhanced probability for below normal temperatures.

At the International Research Institute for Climate and Society’s monthly climate briefing, talk often focuses on the role that El Niño or La Niña play in driving global climate. With the collapse of La Niña last month, though, IRI’s forecasters now have to rely on different tools to offer forecasts for the coming year. That’s [...]

R.I.P. La Niña

by | 5.24.2011 at 9:57am | 1 Comment
Sea surface temperatures in the equatorial Pacific for the week of May 15, 2011. Cooler-than-normal waters (blue) in the eastern tropical Pacific show the broken up La Niña. Click on the chart to go to an interactive version in the IRI Data Library.

La Niña, we hardly knew ye. This year’s iteration of the climate phenomenon nearly set records for strength and riled up world weather for nine months. Now it’s dead. What’s next?

La Niña Still Hanging On

by | 4.26.2011 at 12:51pm
Sea surface temperatures in the equatorial Pacific on 4/21/11. Cooler-than-normal waters (blue) in the eastern tropical Pacific show the weakening La Niña. Click on the chart to go to an interactive version in the IRI Data Library.

IRI’s latest climate briefing shows a weak La Niña still hanging around. The big question is what will happen next?

To Burn, or Not to Burn

by | 4.6.2011 at 12:00pm | 1 Comment
A farmer uses fire to clear his land for planting in Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. Francesco Fiondella/IRI

A new report by the World Resources Institute showcases IRI’s efforts to get decision makers in Indonesia to change their fire policy, so that it was based on seasonal climate information.

La Niña Subsiding, Atlantic Climate Phenomenon Forming

by | 3.21.2011 at 10:30am
This map, updated weekly, shows the cooler-than-normal sea-surface temperatures (blue) in the equatorial Pacific that define La Niña. Click on the chart to go to see the most recent version in the IRI Data Library.

A return to near normal conditions in the Pacific doesn’t mean there aren’t other interesting climatic phenomenon afoot.

La Niña Begins to Weaken

by | 2.18.2011 at 10:11am
This map, updated weekly, shows the cooler-than-normal sea-surface temperatures (blue) in the equatorial Pacific that define La Niña. Click on the chart to go to an interactive version in the IRI Data Library.

The current moderate-strength La Niña is now weakening and is expected to dissipate by late spring, said Tony Barnston, the lead forecaster at the International Research Institute for Climate and Society, which holds a monthly climate briefing. Early February showed the first easing in strength of the cool sea-surface temperatures in the central and eastern [...]

La Niña Rolls On

by | 1.21.2011 at 5:11pm
This map, updated weekly, shows the cooler-than-normal sea-surface temperatures (blue) in the equatorial Pacific that define La Niña. Click on the image to go to the IRI's Data Library.

The current moderate-to-strong La Niña is expected to continue through at least the middle of spring, said forecasters at the International Research Institute for Climate and Society’s monthly climate briefing.

El Niño Begins to Dissipate

by | 4.15.2010 at 2:15pm

Though weak El Niño conditions still exist, it appears that the climatic phenomenon that developed over the course of last summer has finally begun to dissipate. As reported earlier, El Niño is the name given to sustained sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies greater than 0.5°C across the central tropical Pacific Ocean. It is the warm [...]