Saltier seas in spring double the chance of extreme El Niño events, study finds
Stronger El Niño events are more likely when springtime surface waters in the western Pacific Ocean become unusually salty, a new study in Geophysical Research Letters suggests. Traditionally, scientists have focused on temperature and wind patterns to understand El Niño—periodic shifts in the tropical Pacific between warmer and cooler conditions that influence weather patterns across the globe. But researchers now show tha … ⌘ Read more