The Impact of Triple Dip La Nina
- La Nina is a natural geographical phenomenon that can have a significant global impact because of its effect on weather and climate. It is exceptional to have three consecutive years of La Nina events, known as triple-deep La Nina. This event will have some effect by slowing down the rise in global temperatures, but scientists conclude that it will not stop or reverse the long-term warming trend of the earth.
- During a La Nina, the sea surface temperatures over the central and eastern Pacific oceans become cooler than normal. The sea winds blow towards the warm areas with high force causing storms. The change in weather caused by the triple dip La Nina has led to droughts in North and South America, equatorial eastern Africa, and floods in Asia. The WMO predicted that the triple dip La Nina, which began in September 2020, would continue till September-November 2022 and then up to February 2023, making it a three-year-long phenomenon.
- The La Nina event will cause more rainfall over some regions of Southeast Asia, especially Indonesia and Australia, but will reduce rainfall in other areas, such as Africa and the western United States. Triple-dip La Nina will generate stronger ocean winds that intensify during July and August, affecting temperature and rainfall patterns.
- The overall global impact will be manifested in the form of droughts in Ecuador and Peru, heavy floods in Australia, high temperatures in the western pacific, and good rains in India. In the US, the winter temperature tends to be cooler than average in the Northwest and warmer than average in the Southeast. This means The USA experiences warmer, drier weather across the Southeast and cooler, wetter conditions in the Northwest.
Triple Dip La Nina
La Nina (‘Little Girl‘ in Spanish) is a natural and periodic weather pattern that occurs due to fluctuating ocean temperatures in one particular part of the world, namely the east-central equatorial Pacific Ocean. It is the cyclic process of cooling sea surface temperature in the central and eastern Pacific Oceans situated in the equatorial region. This cooling effect results in unique patterns of tropical wind circulation, atmospheric pressure, and rainfall, causing significant changes in weather and climate. The unusual cooling of seawater causes less water evaporation so the air above becomes dryer, cooler, and denser.
This dense air doesn’t develop into storms and causes less rainfall in certain parts of the world and more rainfall in other parts. This natural event typically occurs in a cycle of five to seven years and lasts for about three years. That is why it is called triple-dip La Nina. La Nina gives rise to stronger ocean winds that intensify during July and August, affecting temperature and rainfall patterns. This leads to storms, drought, and flood-like situations.