AE 319: Climate-Based Management of Lawns
Figure 1. Sea surface temperatures in the eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean define El Niño and La Niña. Warmer sea temperatures mean El Niño, while cooler temperatures in this equatorial region indicate La Niña. The panels show the amount (in degrees centigrade) that sea surface temperatures were above the long-term average during a particular El Niño period, and the amount that they were below the long-term average during a La Niña period. Notice the spread of warmer-than-average (orange-red) water to the coast of North, Central and South America the El Niño year. Also, remember that El Niño and La Niña correspond to temperatures in the equatorial Pacific Ocean. Other areas of the Pacific and other oceans may or may not follow this pattern. EQ indicates “Equator.” Each 20 degrees of latitude is marked north and south of the Equator. Meridians are marked every 30 degrees E (east) and W (west) of Greenwich, England along the bottom of each map. The scale beneath each map indicates degrees centigrade below or above the long-term average temperature.
