La Niña Lives! — And That's Bad News
There's a good chance the weather-disrupting phenomenon will persist for a rare third year, possibly exacerbating already severe drought in the U.S. West.
ImaGeo iconImaGeoBy Tom YulsmanMay 24, 2022 3:45 PM
Pacific Sea Surface Temperature Anomalies in April
During April, surface waters of the tropical Pacific Ocean remained chillier than normal — a defining characteristic of the climate phenomenon known as La Niña. (Credit: NOAA Climate.gov)
For two winters in a row, La Niña has steered desperately needed rain and snow storms away from the U.S. Southwest, exacerbating a decades-long drought that has shriveled reservoirs and spurred horrific wildfires.
Now, hopes that the climate pattern would relent and allow moisture to rebound next winter have suffered a serious blow.
La Niña — Spanish for "the girl" — persisted through April, and there's a 61 percent chance she'll stick around for a third winter, according to the latest monthly update from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Evolution of La Niña
The monthly evolution of sea surface temperatures between Jan of 2020 and May of 2022 is seen in this animation focusing on the tropical Pacific. Neutral conditions are present at the start of the animation. Blue colors indicative of cooler than average temperatures begin to spread along the equator, with the La Niña threshold reached in August of 2020. La Niña dissipates in April of 2021 only to re-emerge this past fall, continuing through the end of the animation. (Credit: Images from Climate.gov. Animation by Tom Yulsman)
https://www.discovermagazine.com/environment/la-nina-lives-and-thats-bad-news
