El Niño Southern Oscillation

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Southern Oscillation Index timeseries 1876-2012.

El Niño Southern Oscillation, or ENSO, refers to the effects of a band of sea surface temperatures which are anomalously warm or cold for long periods of time that develops off the western coast of South America and causes climatic changes across the tropics and subtropics. The Walker Circulation was discovered by Gilbert Walker at the turn of the 20th century. The 'Southern Oscillation' refers to variations in the temperature of the surface of the tropical eastern Pacific Ocean (warming and cooling known as El Niño and La Niña, respectively) and in air surface pressure in the tropical western Pacific. The two variations are coupled: the warm oceanic phase, El Niño, accompanies high air surface pressure in the western Pacific, while the cold phase, La Niña, accompanies low air surface pressure in the western Pacific.[1][2] Mechanisms that cause the oscillation remain under study. The extremes of this climate pattern's oscillations cause extreme weather (such as floods and droughts) in many regions of the world. Developing countries dependent upon agriculture and fishing, particularly those bordering the Pacific Ocean, are the most affected.

Gilbert Walker[edit]

Diagram of the quasi-equilibrium and La Niña phase of the Southern Oscillation. The Walker circulation is seen at the surface as easterly trade winds which move water and air warmed by the sun towards the west. The western side of the equatorial Pacific is characterized by warm, wet low pressure weather as the collected moisture is dumped in the form of typhoons and thunderstorms. The ocean is some 60 centimetres (24 in) higher in the western Pacific as the result of this motion. The water and air are returned to the east. Both are now much cooler, and the air is much drier. An El Niño episode is characterised by a breakdown of this water and air cycle, resulting in relatively warm water and moist air in the eastern Pacific.
Main article: Gilbert Walker

Walker was an established applied mathematician at the University of Cambridge when he become director-general of observatories in India in 1904.[3] While there, he studied the characteristics of the Indian Ocean monsoon, the failure of whose rains had brought severe famine to the country in 1899. Analyzing vast amounts of weather data from India and lands beyond, over the next fifteen years he published the first descriptions of the great seesaw oscillation of atmospheric pressure between the Indian and Pacific Ocean, and its correlation to temperature and rainfall patterns across much of the Earth's tropical regions, including India. He is also worked with the Indian Meteorological Department especially in linking the monsoon with Southern Oscillation phenomenon. He was made a Companion of the Order of the Star of India in 1911.[3]

Walker circulation[edit]

Main article: Walker circulation

The Walker circulation is caused by the pressure gradient force that results from a high pressure system over the eastern Pacific ocean, and a low pressure system over Indonesia. The Walker Circulations of the tropical Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic basins result in westerly surface winds in Northern Summer in the first basin and easterly winds in the second and third basins. As a result the temperature structure of the three oceans display dramatic asymmetries. The equatorial Pacific and Atlantic both have cool surface temperatures in Northern Summer in the east, while cooler surface temperatures prevail only in the western Indian Ocean.[4] These changes in surface temperature reflect changes in the depth of the thermocline.[5]

Changes in the Walker Circulation with time occur in conjunction with changes in surface temperature. Some of these changes are forced externally, such as the seasonal shift of the Sun into the Northern Hemisphere in summer. Other changes appear to be the result of coupled ocean-atmosphere feedback in which, for example, easterly winds cause the sea surface temperature to fall in the east, enhancing the zonal heat contrast and hence intensifying easterly winds across the basin. These anomalous easterlies induce more equatorial upwelling and raise the thermocline in the east, amplifying the initial cooling by the southerlies. This coupled ocean-atmosphere feedback was originally proposed by Bjerknes. From an oceanographic point of view, the equatorial cold tongue is caused by easterly winds. Were the earth climate symmetric about the equator, cross-equatorial wind would vanish, and the cold tongue would be much weaker and have a very different zonal structure than is observed today.[6] The Walker cell is indirectly related to upwelling off the coasts of Peru and Ecuador. This brings nutrient-rich cold water to the surface, increasing fishing stocks.[7]

Madden-Julian oscillation[edit]

A Hovmöller diagram of the 5-day running mean of outgoing longwave radiation showing the MJO. Time increases from top to bottom in the figure, so contours that are oriented from upper-left to lower-right represent movement from west to east.

The Madden–Julian oscillation, or (MJO), is the largest element of the intraseasonal (30–90 day) variability in the tropical atmosphere, and was discovered by Roland Madden and Paul Julian of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in 1971. It is a large-scale coupling between atmospheric circulation and tropical deep convection.[8][9] Rather than being a standing pattern like the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the MJO is a traveling pattern that propagates eastward at approximately 4 to 8 m/s (9 to 18 mph), through the atmosphere above the warm parts of the Indian and Pacific oceans. This overall circulation pattern manifests itself in various ways, most clearly as anomalous rainfall. The wet phase of enhanced convection and precipitation is followed by a dry phase where thunderstorm activity is suppressed. Each cycle lasts approximately 30–60 days.[10] Because of this pattern, The MJO is also known as the 30–60 day oscillation, 30–60 day wave, or intraseasonal oscillation.

There is strong year-to-year (interannual) variability in MJO activity, with long periods of strong activity followed by periods in which the oscillation is weak or absent. This interannual variability of the MJO is partly linked to the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) cycle. In the Pacific, strong MJO activity is often observed 6 – 12 months prior to the onset of an El Niño episode, but is virtually absent during the maxima of some El Niño episodes, while MJO activity is typically greater during a La Niña episode. Strong events in the Madden–Julian oscillation over a series of months in the western Pacific can speed the development of an El Niño or La Niña but usually do not in themselves lead to the onset of a warm or cold ENSO event.[11] However, observations suggest that the 1982-1983 El Niño developed rapidly during July 1982 in direct response to a Kelvin wave triggered by an MJO event during late May.[12] Further, changes in the structure of the MJO with the seasonal cycle and ENSO might facilitate more substantial impacts of the MJO on ENSO. For example, the surface westerly winds associated with active MJO convection are stronger during advancement toward El Niño and the surface easterly winds associated with the suppressed convective phase are stronger during advancement toward La Nina.[13]

How the phase is determined[edit]

The various "Niño regions" where sea surface temperatures are monitored to determine the current ENSO phase (warm or cold)

Within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the United States, sea surface temperatures in the Niño 3.4 region, which stretches from the 120th to 150th meridians west longitude astride the equator five degrees of latitude on either side, is monitored. This region is approximately 3,000 kilometres (1,900 mi) to the southeast of Hawai'i. The most recent three-month average for the area is computed, and if the region is more than 0.5 °C (0.9 °F) above or below normal for that period, then an El Niño or La Niña is considered in progress.[14] The United Kingdom's MetOffice also uses a several month period to determine ENSO state.[15] When this warming or cooling occurs for only seven to nine months, it is classified as El Niño/La Niña "conditions"; when it occurs for more than that period, it is classified as El Niño/La Niña "episodes".[16]

Neutral phase[edit]

Average equatorial Pacific temperatures

If the temperature variation from climatology is within 0.5 °C (0.9 °F), ENSO conditions are described as neutral. Neutral conditions are the transition between warm and cold phases of ENSO. Ocean temperatures (by definition), tropical precipitation, and wind patterns are near average conditions during this phase.[17] Close to half of all years are within neutral periods.[18] During the neutral ENSO phase, other climate anomalies/patterns such as the sign of the North Atlantic Oscillation or the Pacific–North American teleconnection pattern exert more influence.[19]

The 1997 El Niño observed by TOPEX/Poseidon

Warm phase[edit]

Main article: El Niño

When the Walker circulation weakens or reverses and the Hadley circulation strengthens an El Niño results,[20] causing the ocean surface to be warmer than average, as upwelling of cold water occurs less or not at all offshore northwestern South America. El Niño (/ɛlˈnnj/, /-ˈnɪn-/, Spanish pronunciation: [el ˈniɲo]) is associated with a band of warmer than average ocean water temperatures that periodically develops off the Pacific coast of South America. El niño is Spanish for "the boy", and the capitalized term El Niño refers to the Christ child, Jesus, because periodic warming in the Pacific near South America is usually noticed around Christmas.[21] It is a phase of 'El Niño–Southern Oscillation' (ENSO), which refers to variations in the temperature of the surface of the tropical eastern Pacific Ocean and in air surface pressure in the tropical western Pacific. The warm oceanic phase, El Niño, accompanies high air surface pressure in the western Pacific.[1][22] Mechanisms that cause the oscillation remain under study.

Cold phase[edit]

Main article: La Niña

An especially strong Walker circulation causes a La Niña, resulting in cooler ocean temperatures due to increased upwelling. La Niña (/lɑːˈnnjə/, Spanish pronunciation: [la ˈniɲa]) is a coupled ocean-atmosphere phenomenon that is the counterpart of El Niño as part of the broader El Niño Southern Oscillation climate pattern. The name La Niña originates from Spanish, meaning "the girl", analogous to El Niño meaning "the boy". It has also in the past been called anti-El Niño, and El Viejo (meaning "the old man").[23] During a period of La Niña, the sea surface temperature across the equatorial Eastern Central Pacific Ocean will be lower than normal by 3–5 °C. In the United States, an appearance of La Niña happens for at least five months of La Niña conditions. La Niña, sometimes informally called "anti-El Niño", is the opposite of El Niño, with a sea surface temperature anomaly of at least 0.5 °C (0.9 °F) below normal and its effects are often the reverse of those of El Niño.


On Precipitation[edit]

Regional impacts of La Niña.

Developing countries dependent upon agriculture and fishing, particularly those bordering the Pacific Ocean, are the most affected by ENSO. The effects of El Niño in South America are direct and strong. An El Niño is associated with warm and very wet weather months in April–October along the coasts of northern Peru and Ecuador, causing major flooding whenever the event is strong or extreme.[24] La Niña causes a drop in sea surface temperatures over Southeast Asia and heavy rains over Malaysia, the Philippines, and Indonesia.[25]

To the north across Alaska, La Niña events lead to drier than normal conditions, while El Niño events do not have a correlation towards dry or wet conditions. During El Niño events, increased precipitation is expected in California due to a more southerly, zonal, storm track.[26] During La Niña, increased precipitation is diverted into the Pacific Northwest due to a more northerly storm track.[27] During La Niña events, the storm track shifts far enough northward to bring wetter than normal winter conditions (in the form of increased snowfall) to the Midwestern states, as well as hot and dry summers.[28] During the El Niño portion of ENSO, increased precipitation falls along the Gulf coast and Southeast due to a stronger than normal, and more southerly, polar jet stream.[29] In the late winter and spring during El Niño events, drier than average conditions can be expected in Hawaii.[30] On Guam during El Niño years, dry season precipitation averages below normal. However, the threat of a tropical cyclone is over triple what is normal during El Niño years, so extreme shorter duration rainfall events are possible.[31] On American Samoa during El Niño events, precipitation averages about 10 percent above normal, while La Niña events lead to precipitation amounts which average close to 10 percent below normal.[32] ENSO is linked to rainfall over Puerto Rico.[33] During an El Niño, snowfall is greater than average across the southern Rockies and Sierra Nevada mountain range, and is well-below normal across the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes states. During a La Niña, snowfall is above normal across the Pacific Northwest and western Great Lakes.[34]

On Tehuantepecers[edit]

Main article: Tehuantepecer

The synoptic condition for the Tehuantepecer, a violent mountain-gap wind in between the mountains of Mexico and Guatemala, is associated with high-pressure system forming in Sierra Madre of Mexico in the wake of an advancing cold front, which causes winds to accelerate through the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. Tehuantepecers primarily occur during the cold season months for the region in the wake of cold fronts, between October and February, with a summer maximum in July caused by the westward extension of the Azores-Bermuda high pressure system. Wind magnitude is greater during El Niño years than during La Niña years, due to the more frequent cold frontal incursions during El Niño winters.[35] Tehuantepec winds reach 20 knots (40 km/h) to 45 knots (80 km/h), and on rare occasions 100 knots (200 km/h). The wind’s direction is from the north to north-northeast.[36] It leads to a localized acceleration of the trade winds in the region, and can enhance thunderstorm activity when it interacts with the Intertropical Convergence Zone.[37] The effects can last from a few hours to six days.[38]

On Global warming[edit]

NOAA graph of Global Annual Temperature Anomalies 1950–2012, showing ENSO

During the last several decades, the number of El Niño events increased, and the number of La Niña events decreased,[39] although observation of ENSO for much longer is needed to detect robust changes.[40] The question is whether this is a random fluctuation or a normal instance of variation for that phenomenon or the result of global climate changes toward global warming.

The studies of historical data show the recent El Niño variation is most likely linked to global warming. For example, one of the most recent results, even after subtracting the positive influence of decadal variation, is shown to be possibly present in the ENSO trend,[41] the amplitude of the ENSO variability in the observed data still increases, by as much as 60% in the last 50 years.[42]

The exact changes happening to ENSO in the future is uncertain:[43] Different models make different predictions.[44][45] It may be that the observed phenomenon of more frequent and stronger El Niño events occurs only in the initial phase of the global warming, and then (e.g., after the lower layers of the ocean get warmer, as well), El Niño will become weaker than it was.[46] It may also be that the stabilizing and destabilizing forces influencing the phenomenon will eventually compensate for each other.[47] More research is needed to provide a better answer to that question. The ENSO is considered to be a potential tipping element in Earth's climate.[48]


  3. ^ a b Rao, C. Hayavando, ed. (1915). The Indian Biographical Dictionary. Madras: Pillar & Co. p. 456. Retrieved 2010-03-20. 
  4. ^ Bureau of Meteorology. "The Walker Circulation". Commonwealth of Austrailia. Retrieved 2014-07-01. 
  5. ^ Zelle, Hein, Gerrian Appledoorn, Gerritt Burgers, and Gert Jan Van Oldenborgh (March 2004). "Relationship Between Sea Surface Temperature and Thermocline Depth in the Eastern Equatorial Pacific". Journal of Physical Oceanography (American Meteorological Society) 34: 643. 
  6. ^ Ocean-atmosphere interaction in the making of the Walker circulation and equatorial cold tongue
  7. ^ Jennings, S., Kaiser, M.J., Reynolds, J.D. (2001) "Marine Fisheries Ecology." Oxford: Blackwell Science Ltd. ISBN 0-632-05098-5
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  11. ^ Gottschalck, Jon and Wayne Higgins (2008-02-16). "Madden Julian Oscillation Impacts". Climate Prediction Center. Retrieved 2009-07-17. 
  12. ^ http://journals.ametsoc.org/doi/full/10.1175/JCLI4249.1?prevSearch=&searchHistoryKey=
  13. ^ http://journals.ametsoc.org/doi/pdf/10.1175/2008JCLI2389.1?prevSearch=&searchHistoryKey=
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  15. ^ MetOffice (2012-10-11). "El Niño, La Niña and the Southern Oscillation". United Kingdom. Retrieved 2014-06-30. 
  17. ^ Climate Prediction Center Internet Team (2012-04-26). "Frequently Asked Questions about El Niño and La Niña". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved 2014-06-30. 
  18. ^ International Research Institute for Climate and Society (February 2002). "More Technical ENSO Comment". Columbia University. Retrieved 2014-06-30. 
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  30. ^ Chu, Pao-Shin. Hawaii Rainfall Anomalies and El Niño. Retrieved on 2008-03-19.
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  36. ^ American Meteorological Society (2012-01-26). "Tehuantepecer". Glossary of Meteorology. Retrieved 2013-05-16. 
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  45. ^ Guilyardi, E.; Wittenberg, Andrew; Fedorov, Alexey; Collins, Mat; Wang, Chunzai; Capotondi, Antonietta; Van Oldenborgh, Geert Jan; Stockdale, Tim (2009). "Understanding El Nino in Ocean-Atmosphere General Circulation Models: Progress and Challenges". American Meteorological Society 90 (3): 325–340. doi:10.1175/2008BAMS2387.1. 
  48. ^ Lenton, T. M.; Held, H.; Kriegler, E.; Hall, J. W.; Lucht, W.; Rahmstorf, S.; Schellnhuber, H. J. (2008). "Inaugural Article: Tipping elements in the Earth's climate system". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 105 (6): 1786. doi:10.1073/pnas.0705414105.  edit

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