Posted by wxii12.com blogs at 9/9/2007 10:41 PM
La Nina appears to be taking shape in the Pacific. The National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration refers to La Nina as the periodic cooling of ocean surface temperatures in the central and east-central equatorial Pacific that occurs every three to five years. Easterly trade winds in the Pacific also strengthen. Take a look at this website and view a current animation of sea surface temperatures in the Pacific:
http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/precip/CWlink/MJO/enso.shtml This pattern may have a big impact on our tropical weather pattern into 2008 by creating encouraging a more active pattern. As we wrap up the 2007 hurricane season with a fall peak in Atlantic storms, we may expect to see an increase in activity through the end of October. “While we can’t officially call it a La Nina yet, we expect that this pattern will continue to develop during the next three months, meeting the NOAA definition for a La Nina event later this year,” said Mike Halpert, acting deputy director of the Climate Prediction Center in Camp Springs, Maryland. For the southeast, this developing pattern may bring a slightly better chance for wet conditions in September and October, but a dry pattern may develop for the winter months. We can only hope for a few tropical systems to bring much needed rainfall to the Carolinas this fall. La Nina will likely mean a wetter than normal conditions in the Pacific Northwest and drier than normal conditions in the drought stricken southwestern United States this fall. Look for the next La Nina update from the Climate Prediction Center on October 11th.
