The Short Answer: La Niña is a weather pattern that occurs in the Pacific Ocean . In this pattern, strong winds blow warm water at the ocean’s surface from South America to Indonesia. As the warm water moves west, cold water from the deep rises to the surface near the coast of South America.
What is La Niña in simple terms?
La Niña is a climate pattern that describes the cooling of surface ocean waters along the tropical west coast of South America . La Nina is considered to be the counterpart to El Nino, which is characterized by unusually warm ocean temperatures in the equatorial region of the Pacific Ocean.
What problems does La Niña cause?
The effects of La Niña are experienced globally. With catastrophic floods, hurricanes and cyclones in countries on the western part of the Pacific and, on the other hand, bushfires and droughts along the west coast of the USA and East Africa, farms are adversely affected, and crops can be produced as expected.
Is 2020 an El Nino or La Niña year?
But forecasters at NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center have issued a La Niña Watch, which means they see La Niña likely emerging (~55%) during the September-November period and lasting through winter. June 2021 sea surface temperature departure from the 1991-2020 average. Image from Data Snapshots on Climate.gov.
What kind of weather does La Niña bring?
A typical La Niña winter in the U.S. brings cold and snow to the Northwest and unusually dry conditions to most of the southern tier of the U.S., according to NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center. The Southeast and Mid-Atlantic also tend to see warmer-than-average temperatures during a La Niña winter.
What does a strong La Niña mean?
A strong La Niña is defined as having sea surface temperatures at least 1.5 degrees Celsius colder than average .
Is La Niña wet or dry?
Where El Niño is wet, La Niña is dry . While El Niño conditions and their seasonal impacts look very different from normal, La Niña conditions often bring winters that are typical — only more so.
Is La Nina year 2020?
The La Niña climate pattern is forecast to return this fall and last through the winter of 2021-22 , federal forecasters reported Thursday. ... The prediction center said this year’s La Niña (translated from Spanish as “little girl”) is likely to persist through the winter.
Is La Nina warm or cold?
La Nina refers to the periodic cooling of ocean surface temperatures in the central and east-central equatorial Pacific. Typically, La Nina events occur every 3 to 5 years or so, but on occasion can occur over successive years. La Nina represents the cool phase of the El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) cycle.
When was the last period of La Niña?
Recent years when La Niña Modoki events occurred include 1973–1974, 1975–1976, 1983–1984, 1988–1989, 1998–1999, 2000–2001, 2008–2009, 2010–2011, and 2016–2017 . The recent discovery of ENSO Modoki has some scientists believing it to be linked to global warming. However, comprehensive satellite data go back only to 1979.
Does La Niña cause drought?
La Nina occurs when the equatorial Pacific Ocean cools, triggering an atmospheric chain reaction that can cause droughts across the western U.S. and roil weather systems globally.
Why is La Niña called little girl?
In Spanish, El Niño means “the little boy” and La Niña means “the little girl.” They are sort of like a brother and sister. ... La Niña causes water in the eastern Pacific to be colder than usual . In the same region, El Niño can cause the water to be warmer than usual.
How can we reduce the effects of La Niña?
Stay inside a house or building during heavy rains. Avoid wading and taking baths in floodwaters . When a flood advisory is issued, residents in low lying areas should seek for higher grounds. Avoid crossing low-lying areas and bridges during evacuation.
What are 2 effects of El Niño?
Severe drought and associated food insecurity, flooding, rains, and temperature rises due to El Niño are causing a wide range of health problems, including disease outbreaks, malnutrition, heat stress and respiratory diseases.
Does La Niña mean more rain in California?
“ La Niña doesn’t mean anything absolutely ,” L’Heureux said. ... While La Niña could mean bad news for the Southwest, the opposite may be true for the Pacific Northwest, where the winter weather pattern tends to bring more precipitation, not less, according to the climate scientist.
What is an effect of La Niña apex?
La Niña is thus defined as the intense cooling of the eastern and central tropical Pacific Ocean , frequently experienced together with warmer than normal sea surface temperatures in the west side of the Pacific. Just like an El Niño event, La Niña is tied to increased chances of extensive changes in global weather.
