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Septemeber 20, 2002 : 26th Edition |
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El Nino
Is El Nino back? The National Weather Service says YES! The last El Nino peaked in December of 1997. It was considered a very strong El Nino. This El Nino is not expected to be strong but still weather patterns will be affected. The whys and hows of the El Nino phenomenon is the subject of this month's WeatherMania.
Learn for Tomorrow,
What is El
Nino?
According to NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, "El Niño is a disruption of the ocean-atmosphere system in the Tropical Pacific having important consequences for weather and climate around the globe." El Nino is Spanish for "the little boy". In this case because the conditions that accompany El Nino are seen around the end of December, the name used is that given in Peru to the "Christ Child". Fishermen along the coast of Peru have known for centuries that warm water replaces the normal cooler waters during the first months of every year. Occasionally, the warm water appears earlier, around Christmastime, and stays longer, for even a year or two. This change in water temperature also brings rain to the usually arid region. Sometimes too much. And the warm waters are not good for fishing. The cooler, better fishing waters are held away from the coast and fishermen have to go much farther to the west to find the cooler waters that mean good fishing. Entries about El Nino appear in many ship's logs as early as the 1500's. Approximately 25 years
ago, climatologists began to correlate the oceanic temperature and wind
direction changes with changes in weather
El Nino Event -
Red Indicates
Warmest
Temperatures The El Nino/La Nina phenomenon is known scientifically as ENSO or El Nino- Southern Oscillation. Warm Trade Winds normally blow east to west across the Southern Pacific. These winds push warm waters westward away from the shores of South America. This causes the deeper, cold waters underneath to rise to the surface (convection) carrying with them the microscopic plants and animals that fish use as foodsources. The cool waters provide abundant fishing for Peruvian fishermen. During a non El Nino year, the warm waters around Indonesia and Australia rise in both height and temperature causing heavy rains that are normal for the region. Hot air over hot water causes evaporation. The warm, humid air rises and cools producing clouds and precipitation. Warmer water and air produce greater amounts of rainfall. Some
years the Trade Winds relax or even move west to east so that warm
water is pushed eastward toward South America. The cool waters do
not rise and
Normal
Temperatures Courtesy
NOAA
These events also have an effect on the Hurricane Season
which lasts from June through November. During an El Nino year, the
number and intensity of Atlantic and Caribbean hurricanes is
diminished. This year's El Nino is not as strong as the El Nino of
1997 but it has strengthened according to the National Weather Service and
is expected to affect the hurricanes in September and October.
This El Nino is predicted to last into early 2003 so we could have a
wetter winter in the South, Southwest and the East Coast. The Upper
Midwest could be warmer and the Great Lakes drier than in normal
years. Only time will tell.
Joking About the
Weather Question: How did you find the weather on your
vacation?
Produce your own El Nino Event When hot air meets hot water?
Conclusions: The air above the glass with the hot water will feel warmer than the air above the cold water. We see that hot water produces hot air above the water.
You also find that the hand you held above the warm
water feels wetter than your other hand. We see that water molecules
from warm water evaporate into the air causing moist, warm
air. Now think about a huge area of ocean that is so
warm that the air above it is heated and becomes moist. That moist
air rises and condenses forming clouds which produce precipitation -
sometimes a lot of it. The tropical Pacific Ocean during an El Nino
event acts much the same way. As the warm water flows eastward into
areas that usually have cool water, more rain than usual
occurs. Weather Wizard Tropical The parts of the earth between 20°N and
20°S latitude with very hot and humid conditions and
temperatures greater than 65°F and rain most of the
year. Water Vapor Water in a vapor (gaseous) form;
also referred to as atmospheric moisture. Water vapor is one of the most
important parts of the atmosphere.
An El Nino or ENSO event in the Pacific Ocean causes which of the following conditions?
Answer: All of the above. The effects of El Nino are far-reaching and cause weather events all over the world, not just along the edge of the Pacific. Did You Know?
Trainer's Corner It seemed a good idea to repeat this activity
for anyone who may have missed the June issue in which it originally
appeared. This is a great way to approach an El Nino study
that could last all year. Choose school sites from around the U.S. to complete the table
below. This is a suggestion for setting up a chart to collect
weather information for an El Nino study. Gathering information for
this entire school year will give you the best analysis, but you
can revise the chart to fit your own study. You may wish
to record the weather information on a monthly basis or even
everyday. Averages/Normal Weather
Conditions:
Average Precipitation Avg Temps. (High/Low) Location December January December January Northwest West (California) SouthEast (Florida) SouthWest Upper MidWest (Montana) MidWest (Kansas) Gulf Coast (New Orleans) Great Lakes East Coast
If you would like more information about AWS Professional Development , contact Diana at ddell@aws.com. Tech Corner Keeping the Weather
Station Mast Secure On
June 11th, 2002, after 5 years of hibernation, El Nino once again popped
his head out predicting months of unusual weather. The Gulf Coast from Louisiana to
Florida will experience a wetter than normal winter. There will be more East Coast
winter storms and a drier than normal fall and winter in the Pacific
Northwest.
The
last El Nino event, in 1997-1998, was responsible for the loss of 189
lives and 2.8 billion dollars in damage. But El Nino was not entirely
negative. It did result in
6.7 billion dollars saved in reduced heating costs. Lack of data has made it difficult
for scientists to evaluate the enormous effects of El
Nino.
For
this reason, it’s important to have your weather station properly
installed and secured in order to responsibly report through the long
months of El Nino conditions.
As
far as maintenance of the weather station itself, there is in reality
little that needs to be maintained other than occasionally cleaning the
rain gauge. However, it is a
good idea to check that the mast holding the sensors is securely anchored
and that the data cable is protected by conduit where it is outside the
building.
With greater technology we will be able to collect sufficient data enhance our understanding of the powerful phenomenon known as El Nino. Sunny
Days! Technical
Support
If you would like additional technical support information, email support@aws.com . Interesting Links
1. El Nino 2. Ship
Ka'imimoana
Oceanographer Oceanography is the study of oceans. It involves many areas of science including
physics, chemistry, biology or geology and more recently computers as well as mathematics. There are many different types of oceanographers who study different parts of the ocean and the effect those parts have on each other and our environment on land. Physical Oceanographers are the Ocean's weathermen and women. They primarily study the physical aspects of the ocean including temperature, density, wave motions, tides, currents and salinity (how salty it is). They also study the relationship between the ocean and the atmosphere and try to predict (based on their findings) the effects these factors will have on our climate. These oceanographers play a large role in studying the phenomena of El Nino and La Nina. Marine Biologists study the plants and animals that live in the oceans. Chemical Oceanographers study the chemical composition of seawater and its interaction with the atmosphere and the seafloor. A Geological Oceanographer studies the ocean floor and tries to map geological structures like mountains and trenches. A Computer Modeler produces the models, using computer technology, that attempt to demonstrate the physical and chemical changes taking place in the ocean. Students interested in pursuing a career in oceanography should have a strong math and science background. They should plan on majoring in math or one of the major scientific fields as an undergraduate and then pursuing a Masters Degree or a Doctorate focusing on oceanography. The federal government, colleges and universities and private industries, most often employ oceanographers. Oceanographers can expect to spend much of their time at sea or in a laboratory. To stop receiving WeatherMania eNews click here. To sign up a friend or co-worker, click here.
Be a WeatherNet School
WeatherMania and WeatherBug are just two of the educational resources for teachers and students offered by the AWS School
WeatherNet Program. Purchase your own WeatherNet System.
Call 1-800-544-4429 to join today.
AWS Convergence
Technologies, Inc., 2-5 Metropolitan Court Gaithersburg,
MD 20878 www.aws.com
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