Written by H e r e y n ch y y a s s
Weather is about more than predicting the future; it’s a medium term snapshot of the past.
We know we have an El Niño and La Niña influence when El Niño crosses the equator or La Niña crosses the Isthmus, but what does that really mean?
The year 2016 and 2017 were La Niña years but it’s likely we’ll have another one.
Another La Niña year might seem like bad news, but it can be useful.
A La Niña year can limit international conflicts, reduce extreme heat events, more efficiently manage the impact of sea level rise and lengthen some seasons.
Though La Niña is referred to as the weakest of the El Niño/Southern Oscillation cycle (ENSO), it can still be a fairly powerful contributor to the weather pattern that defines the western Pacific.
A complete analysis of climate effects of La Niña is complicated, but typically by around mid-July the La Niña is firmly in place.
