Related News
Weak La Nina likely this year, say experts
Source: Agencies |
September 2, 2011, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
LA Nina, a weather phenomenon typically linked to Asia-Pacific regional flooding, African drought and a more intense hurricane season over the Atlantic, could occur in a weak form this year, the World Meteorological Organization said yesterday.
A borderline La Nina situation has developed in recent weeks in the tropical part of the Pacific Ocean, where sea surface temperatures have cooled slightly, but there is an equal chance of neutral conditions returning, the United Nations agency said.
"If a La Nina event does occur, current indications are that it would be considerably weaker than the moderate to strong 2010-11 episode, which ended in May 2011," the WMO said in a statement calling for continued close monitoring.
But there is virtually no prospect of El Nino, its opposite weather phenomenon which warms the Pacific, occurring this year, it said in an assessment based on data from climate prediction centres and experts worldwide.
La Nina, a natural cooling of the Pacific Ocean, occurs every two to seven years, causing major climate fluctuations, including altered tropical rainfall patterns, according to WMO expert Rupa Kumar Kolli.
The 2010-11 La Nina episode was linked to disastrous flooding in parts of Australia, Indonesia, southeast Asia, and parts of South America including Colombia, the WMO said.
It also contributed to drought in parts of the Horn of Africa, southeastern South America and the southern US, and weaker winter monsoons in Sri Lanka and southern India.
"The last La Nina, which was moderate to strong, was believed to have caused the drought conditions over the greater Horn of Africa which we all know is undergoing a famine," Kolli said, referring to parts of Somalia that have been declared famine zones.
"So for them this can be considered to be cause for additional alert," he said.
But the climate over eastern Africa is strongly influenced by the Indian Ocean, which can create opposite effects, so both factors must be taken into account, he added. Experts were now meeting in Entebbe, Uganda to chart a regional outlook.
La Nina weather could return to delay planting of Brazil's grain crop again, forcing Chinese buyers to rely on US Gulf-port soybeans longer and putting Brazil's corn output at risk, grain specialists said on Tuesday.
Brazil's coffee belt may face more weather risks if rainfall is erratic in the world's top coffee-growing country, as some forecasters fear, during the critical flowering phase that will define next year's crop.
La Nina is also closely associated with a more intense hurricane season over the tropical North Atlantic, Kolli said.
A low-pressure system pushing northwest through the Gulf of Mexico has a strong chance of becoming a tropical cyclone in the next two days and threatening southern US states, the National Hurricane Center said yesterday.
A borderline La Nina situation has developed in recent weeks in the tropical part of the Pacific Ocean, where sea surface temperatures have cooled slightly, but there is an equal chance of neutral conditions returning, the United Nations agency said.
"If a La Nina event does occur, current indications are that it would be considerably weaker than the moderate to strong 2010-11 episode, which ended in May 2011," the WMO said in a statement calling for continued close monitoring.
But there is virtually no prospect of El Nino, its opposite weather phenomenon which warms the Pacific, occurring this year, it said in an assessment based on data from climate prediction centres and experts worldwide.
La Nina, a natural cooling of the Pacific Ocean, occurs every two to seven years, causing major climate fluctuations, including altered tropical rainfall patterns, according to WMO expert Rupa Kumar Kolli.
The 2010-11 La Nina episode was linked to disastrous flooding in parts of Australia, Indonesia, southeast Asia, and parts of South America including Colombia, the WMO said.
It also contributed to drought in parts of the Horn of Africa, southeastern South America and the southern US, and weaker winter monsoons in Sri Lanka and southern India.
"The last La Nina, which was moderate to strong, was believed to have caused the drought conditions over the greater Horn of Africa which we all know is undergoing a famine," Kolli said, referring to parts of Somalia that have been declared famine zones.
"So for them this can be considered to be cause for additional alert," he said.
But the climate over eastern Africa is strongly influenced by the Indian Ocean, which can create opposite effects, so both factors must be taken into account, he added. Experts were now meeting in Entebbe, Uganda to chart a regional outlook.
La Nina weather could return to delay planting of Brazil's grain crop again, forcing Chinese buyers to rely on US Gulf-port soybeans longer and putting Brazil's corn output at risk, grain specialists said on Tuesday.
Brazil's coffee belt may face more weather risks if rainfall is erratic in the world's top coffee-growing country, as some forecasters fear, during the critical flowering phase that will define next year's crop.
La Nina is also closely associated with a more intense hurricane season over the tropical North Atlantic, Kolli said.
A low-pressure system pushing northwest through the Gulf of Mexico has a strong chance of becoming a tropical cyclone in the next two days and threatening southern US states, the National Hurricane Center said yesterday.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
