SPOTTING AN EL NIÑ0
OTHER IMPACTS
TYPICAL IMPACTS
O N O U R C L I M AT E
in the tropical Pacific Ocean warm,
both at the surface and below
changes across the Pacific;
higher in the west, lower in the east
RAINFALL DECREASES
TEMPERATURE
INCREASED BUSHFIRE RISK
IN EASTERN AUSTRALIA
INCREASES IN SOUTHERN AUSTRALIA
FEWER TROPICAL CYCLONES
LATER START TO NORTHERN WET SEASON
(DAYTIME TEMPERATURES)
MORE HEATWAVES
LONGER FROST RISK SEASON
REDUCED CHANCE OF WIDESPREAD FLOODS
weaken, and sometimes reverse
increases near the
Date Line
WHEN DO THEY OCCUR?
EL
NIÑO
IN AUSTRALIA
USUALLY EL NIÑO DEVELOPS IN
LESS CHANCE OF INDIAN OCEAN HEATWAVES
STRONGER SEABREEZES
EVERY EL NIÑO
IS DIFFERENT
EL NIÑO WINTER AND SPRING RAINFALL
AND STARTS TO DECAY IN SUMMER
EL NIÑO EVENTS CAN
1982
LAST FOR AS LITTLE AS
6
MONTHS
OR AS LONG AS
ON AVERAGE
THEY OCCUR EVERY
YEARS
3 5
2
YEARS
7 10
OUT
OF
THE LAST
EL NIÑO
WAS IN
2009–10
OF THE HOTTEST YEARS ON
RECORD WERE IN AN EL NIÑO
YEAR OR THE YEAR FOLLOWING
1997
RED = DRIER THAN NORMAL BLUE = WETTER THAN NORMAL
THERE HAVE BEEN
EL NIÑO EVENTS
SINCE 1900
H AV E BROUG H T
WIDESPREAD
DROUGHT
7
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