Abstract
A relationship between the timing of El Niño onset and the subsequent evolution is examined, using 130-year long time series of Niño-3.4 index from 1871 to 2000. It is found that El Niño events can be classified into two major types: one is the onset of which is from April to June (spring type) and the other is from July to October (summer-fall type). Here, the duration of El Niño is defined as the period when the 5-month running mean anomaly of Niño-3.4 index is exceeding 0.5°C. As a result, 24 El Niño events are identified, and classified into 10 spring type events and 14 summer-fall type events. In general, spring type events grow greater in magnitude, and take the mature phase around a boreal winter and the evolution is relatively regular. On the contrary, summer-fall type events are relatively weaker in magnitude, and have rather irregular aspects.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | L06304 1-4 |
Journal | Geophysical Research Letters |
Volume | 31 |
Issue number | 6 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2004 Mar 28 |
Externally published | Yes |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Geophysics
- Earth and Planetary Sciences(all)