Uploaded July 2020 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Today, NOAA issued a La Niña Watch, which means conditions are favorable for the development of the influential tropical Pacific climate phenomenon later this year. Among the signs pointing to La Niña is the appearance of cooler-than-average surface waters across the central and eastern Pacific at the equator. This animation shows satellite-based sea surface temperatures each week from April 13 through July 5, 2020, compared to the long-term average.
At the start of the movie, most of the equatorial Pacific is warmer than average (orange and red), but by early May, a hint of cooler-than-average water (blue) appears to the west of the Galapagos Islands. Through May and June, these cooler-than-average waters expand and intensify across much of the eastern Pacific, forming "tropical instability waves" as they mix with surrounding waters. Read more @ the Climate.gov ENSO blog (climate.gov/news-features/department/enso-blog).
This video was produced by Climate.gov, using maps available from the NOAA view project at NOAA"s Environmental Visualization Lab. Unless specifically stated otherwise, Climate.gov video productions can be freely republished or re-purposed by others.
Today, NOAA issued a La Niña Watch, which means conditions are favorable for the development of the influential tropical Pacific climate phenomenon later this year. Among the signs pointing to La Niña is the appearance of cooler-than-average surface waters across the central and eastern Pacific at the equator. This animation shows satellite-based sea surface temperatures each week from April 13 through July 5, 2020, compared to the long-term average.
At the start of the movie, most of the equatorial Pacific is warmer than average (orange and red), but by early May, a hint of cooler-than-average water (blue) appears to the west of the Galapagos Islands. Through May and June, these cooler-than-average waters expand and intensify across much of the eastern Pacific, forming "tropical instability waves" as they mix with surrounding waters. Read more @ the Climate.gov ENSO blog (climate.gov/news-features/department/enso-blog).
This video was produced by Climate.gov, using maps available from the NOAA view project at NOAA"s Environmental Visualization Lab. Unless specifically stated otherwise, Climate.gov video productions can be freely republished or re-purposed by others.
