El Nio: a warm current of water

http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/eln/def.rxml

El Nio
a warm current of water El Nio (Spanish name for the male child), initially referred to a weak, warm current appearing annually around Christmas time along the coast of Ecuador and Peru and lasting only a few weeks to a month or more. Every three to seven years, an El Nio event may last for many months, having significant economic and atmospheric consequences worldwide. During the past forty years, ten of these major El Nio events have been recorded, the worst of which occurred in 1997-1998. Previous to this, the El Nio event in 1982-1983 was the strongest. Some of the El Nio events have persisted more than one year.

El Nio Years
1902-1903 1918-1919 1932-1933 1953-1954 1972-1973 1991-1992
Selected text from: CPC ENSO Main Page

1905-1906 1923-1924 1939-1940 1957-1958 1976-1977 1994-1995

1911-1912 1925-1926 1941-1942 1965-1966 1982-1983 1997-1998

1914-1915 1930-1931 1951-1952 1969-1970 1986-1987

In the tropical Pacific, trade winds generally drive the surface waters westward. The . surface water becomes progressively warmer going westward because of its longer exposure to solar heating. El Nio is observed when the easterly trade winds weaken, allowing warmer waters of the western Pacific to migrate eastward and eventually reach the South American Coast (shown in orange). The cool nutrient-rich sea water normally found along the coast of Peru is replaced by warmer water depleted of nutrients, resulting in a dramatic reduction in marine fish and plant life.

Animation by: Shao

In contrast to El Nio, La Nia (female child) refers to an anomaly of unusually cold sea surface temperatures found in the eastern tropical Pacific. La Nia occurs roughly half as often as El Nio.

La Nia Years
1904-1905 1909-1910 1910-1911 1915-1916

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El Nio: a warm current of water

http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/eln/def.rxml

1917-1918 1950-1951 1970-1971 1988-1989

Selected text from: CPC ENSO Main Page

1924-1925 1955-1956 1971-1972 1995-1996

1928-1929 1956-1957 1973-1974

1938-1939 1964-1965 1975-1976

Terms for using data resources. CD-ROM available. Credits and Acknowledgments for WW2010. Department of Atmospheric Sciences (DAS) at introduction '97-'98 event the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

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