EPSC 185 Chapter Notes -Sea Surface Temperature, Walker Circulation, Atmospheric Circulation
15 Sep 2013
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El nino in peru first months of each year has warm southward current every few years, warming starts earlier, is stronger & lasts longer (can be year or two) Warm water brings water snakes, bananas & coconuts. But shuts off deep, cold water crucial for marine life. El nino = the christ child named due to late december appearance large-scale oceanic warming. Counterpart = la nina (cooling of eastern tropical pacific) Normally accompanied by southern oscillation (change in atmospheric circulation) Clearest sign of so = inverse relationship between surface air pressure at. Darwin, australia & tahiti: high pressure at one site almost always concurrent with low pressure at the other, pattern reverses every few years, represents wave/see-saw of air oscillating back & forth across date line. Allow westward-flowing water to remain near surface & gradually heat. As warm surface water collects in w pacific, pushes down thermocline.
