El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is a coupled ocean–atmosphere phenomenon in the tropical Pacific characterized by quasi-periodic fluctuations between warm (El Niño), cold (La Niña), and neutral phases. It arises from interactions among equatorial Pacific sea-surface temperatures, trade winds, and the Walker circulation, producing large-scale anomalies in convection, thermocline depth, and surface pressure, notably the Southern Oscillation index. ENSO modulates global atmospheric circulation, altering precipitation, temperature, and storm tracks on interannual timescales, and serves as a key source of seasonal-to-interannual climate variability and predictability in climate diagnostics and modeling.
El Niños and La Niñas are the third-most dominant influences on Earth's climate, after the sun and the greenhouse effect. But they haven't been easy to decipher or to predict in terms of when they will happen and what exact ...
As of June 2026, El Niño has officially arrived. This naturally recurring phenomenon is characterized by warmer-than-normal water temperatures in parts of the equatorial Pacific, along with changes to atmospheric and oceanic ...
Environment
Aug 10, 2026
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El Niño continues to intensify steadily and is expected to dominate global climate patterns in the August to October 2026 season, increasing the likelihood of above-normal temperatures across much of the world and driving ...
Earth Sciences
Aug 3, 2026
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A brewing "super" El Nino cycle is poised to unleash heat waves, floods and drought worldwide, with the effects amplified by long-term human-caused climate change.
Earth Sciences
Aug 1, 2026
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Two of the world's most fire-prone regions have followed strikingly different wildfire trajectories despite both experiencing a warming climate. Burned forest area has surged across the U.S. Southwest, while eastern Australia ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 30, 2026
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Sea-surface salinity, the concentration of dissolved salts in the upper layer of the ocean, is much more than a measure of how salty the sea is. It responds rapidly to changes in rainfall, evaporation, river discharge and, ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 30, 2026
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On a boat off the coast of California, Sara Lesser gazes wistfully at dozens of dolphins playing in the vessel's wake. This summer, extreme heat is making such a scene increasingly rare.
Ecology
Jul 27, 2026
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Subseasonal forecasting, or the ability to predict weather trends two weeks to two months in advance, is a capability highly sought after in various economic sectors, including energy, water management and agriculture. Reliable ...
Environment
Jul 23, 2026
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Cardiff University leads a multidisciplinary research collaboration representing academia and multiple nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to explore Somalia's 2023 El Niño floods and lessons learned from a similar event ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 21, 2026
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Tropical forests draw down and store large quantities of CO₂ from the atmosphere. The Amazon rainforest in South America, for example, stores approximately 123 billion tons of carbon—more than is stored in any other terrestrial ...
Environment
Jul 10, 2026
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