La Nina exits after three weak months, leaving Earth in neutral climate state
See you later La Nina, we hardly knew you.
La Nina, the natural cooling flip side of the better known and warmer El Nino climate phenomenon, has dwindled away after just three months. The La Nina that appeared in January, months later than forecast, was a weak one, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Thursday.
Earth is now in a neutral setting in the El Nino Southern Oscillation cycle, which is generally the most benign of the three states that help influence hurricane formation, droughts, floods and global temperatures. NOAA forecasts the neutral setting to last most if not all of 2025. That makes longer-term weather forecasts a bit trickier because one of the major factors is not pushing one way or the other.
La Nina is an irregular rising of unusually cold water in a key part of the central equatorial Pacific that changes weather patterns worldwide. It typically brings more Atlantic hurricanes in the summer, but it won't be a factor this year. In the United States, La Ninas tend to cause drier weather in the South and West and often make it wetter in parts of Indonesia, northern Australia and southern Africa.
Studies have found that La Ninas tend to be costlier than El Ninos and neutral conditions.
Before this three-month La Nina, the world had an unusually long three-year La Nina that ended in 2023.
___
The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
2 days ago
- The Guardian
‘Ticking timebomb': sea acidity has reached critical levels, threatening entire ecosystems
The world's oceans are in worse health than realised, scientists have said today, as they warn that a key measurement shows we are 'running out of time' to protect marine ecosystems. Ocean acidification, often called the 'evil twin' of the climate crisis, is caused when carbon dioxide is rapidly absorbed by the ocean, where it reacts with water molecules leading to a fall in the pH level of the seawater. It damages coral reefs and other ocean habitats and, in extreme cases, can dissolve the shells of marine creatures. Until now, ocean acidification had not been deemed to have crossed its 'planetary boundary'. The planetary boundaries are the natural limits of key global systems – such as climate, water and wildlife diversity – beyond which their ability to maintain a healthy planet is in danger of failing. Six of the nine had been crossed already, scientists said last year. However, a new study by the UK's Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML), the Washington-based National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Oregon State University's Co-operative Institute for Marine Resources Studies found that ocean acidification's 'boundary' was also reached about five years ago. 'Ocean acidification isn't just an environmental crisis – it's a ticking timebomb for marine ecosystems and coastal economies,' said PML's Prof Steve Widdicombe, who is also co-chair of the Global Ocean Acidification Observing Network. The study drew on new and historical physical and chemical measurements from ice cores, combined with advanced computer models and studies of marine life, which gave the scientists an overall assessment of the past 150 years. It found that by 2020 the average ocean condition worldwide was already very close to – and in some regions beyond – the planetary boundary for ocean acidification. This is defined as when the concentration of calcium carbonate in seawater is more than 20% below preindustrial levels. The deeper in the ocean they looked, the worse the findings were, the scientists said. At 200 metres below the surface, 60% of global waters had breached the 'safe' limit for acidification. 'Most ocean life doesn't just live at the surface,' said PML's Prof Helen Findlay. 'The waters below are home to many more different types of plants and animals. Since these deeper waters are changing so much, the impacts of ocean acidification could be far worse than we thought.' This had, she added, huge implications for important underwater ecosystems such as tropical and even deep-sea coral reefs that provided essential habitats and nursery grounds for the young of many species. As pH levels drop, calcifying species such as corals, oysters, mussels and tiny molluscs known as sea butterflies struggle to maintain their protective structures, leading to weaker shells, slower growth, reduced reproduction and decreased survival rates. The authors underlined that decreasing CO2 emissions was the only way to deal with acidification globally, but that conservation measures could and should focus on the regions and species that were most vulnerable. Jessie Turner, director of the International Alliance to Combat Ocean Acidification, who was not involved in the study, said: 'This report makes it clear: we are running out of time and what we do – or fail to do – now is already determining our future. 'We are coming to terms with an existential threat while grappling with the difficult reality that much suitable habitat for key species has already been lost. It's clear that governments can no longer afford to overlook acidification in mainstream policy agendas,' she said.
Daily Mirror
5 days ago
- Daily Mirror
Grim issue with 'terrible' smell could jeopardise holidays at top destinations
A grim problem with a "terrible" smell has arisen on a vast swathe of coastline in the Americas, from Puerto Rico to Guyana, affecting hotel bookings and even shutting schools A grim issue with a "terrible" smell could be jeopardising travel plans for tourists visiting the sun-kissed beaches of the Caribbean. Masses of a type of seaweed named sargassum have swamped a broad stretch of coast from Puerto Rico to Guyana, affecting locations across the West Atlantic, Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico. La Vanguardia, a Spanish newspaper, reported that scientists observed a record amount of the troublesome macroalgae in May, but the situation could deteriorate even further this month. The seaweed invasion is reportedly hampering tourism industries in Mexico and Colombia. Meanwhile, anti-seaweed defences have been activated in the Dominican Republic, whilst the popular holiday destination of Barbados faces dips in hotel reservations. Argentina's Infobae has highlighted that this expansive belt of sargassum may extend for hundreds or even thousands of miles. Satellite imagery suggests it's drifting through the Caribbean and potentially heading for the US' southern coastline. Researchers at the University of South Florida's Optical Oceanography Laboratory warned of a whopping 150% increase in Caribbean levels, uncovering a shocking 40 million metric tonnes in the Atlantic, Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico. It also emits an unpleasant smell (likened to rotten eggs) when it rots, which is reportedly such an issue that it's led to school closures in Martinique. Yet, scientists don't know why the sargassum levels have doubled to these record-breaking levels. However, experts have suggested that changes in rainfall, wind, currents, and warming waters may impact its proliferation. Brian Barnes, an assistant research professor at the University of South Florida, remarked: "The peaks seem to be getting bigger year after year." Yet, the reasons behind this dramatic increase remain a puzzle. He confessed: "It's the million-dollar question. I don't have a satisfactory answer." The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) describes sargassum as a type of large brown seaweed that floats in "island-like" masses. It also has structures known as pneumatocysts. Pneumatocysts, which provide buoyancy and allow the seaweed to float on the sea, look similar to berries and contain gas, primarily oxygen. Sometimes spanning miles, sargassum provides sustenance and breeding grounds for various marine life, including birds, sea turtles, fish, shrimp, and crabs. Some creatures, like the sargassum fish, even spend their entire existence within this floating habitat. Moreover, the NOAA notes that sargassum serves as a nursery for several commercially significant fish species such as amberjacks, mahi mahi, and jacks. Brian conceded that large amounts of seaweed on the open water is conducive with a "healthy and happy ecosystem", but it can also prove to be an issue for ecosystems when it gathers on the shore. He further explained that it can pose a problem for coral reefs, as it obstructs the sunlight they need to survive. Additionally, when it washes up on shore, the creatures living in it either perish or become easy prey for birds.
Glasgow Times
5 days ago
- Glasgow Times
Japanese lunar lander crashes while attempting touchdown on the Moon
Tokyo-based company ispace declared the mission a failure several hours after communication was lost with the lander. Flight controllers scrambled to gain contact, but were met with only silence and said they were concluding the mission. Communications ceased less than two minutes before the spacecraft's scheduled landing on the Moon with a mini rover. Until then, the descent from lunar orbit seemed to be going well. People await the update on the private lunar lander's attempt to touch down on the Moon (Kyodo News via AP/PA) Takeshi Hakamada, ispace chief executive officer and founder, apologised to everyone who contributed to the mission, the second lunar strikeout for the company. Two years ago, the company's first moonshot ended in a crash landing, giving rise to the name Resilience for its successor lander. Resilience carried a rover with a shovel to gather lunar dirt as well as a Swedish artist's toy-size red house for placement on the Moon's dusty surface. Company officials said it was too soon to know whether the same problem doomed both missions. 'This is the second time that we were not able to land. So we really have to take it very seriously,' Mr Hakamada told reporters. He stressed the company would press ahead with more lunar missions. A preliminary analysis indicates the laser system for measuring the altitude did not work as planned and the lander descended too fast, officials said. 'Based on these circumstances, it is currently assumed that the lander likely performed a hard landing on the lunar surface,' the company said in a written statement. Long the province of governments, the Moon became a target of private outfits in 2019, with more flops than successes along the way. Takeshi Hakamada apologised for the mission's failure (Kyodo News via AP/PA) Launched in January from Florida on a long, roundabout journey, Resilience entered lunar orbit last month. It shared a SpaceX ride with Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost, which reached the Moon faster and became the first private entity to successfully land there in March. Another US company, Intuitive Machines, arrived at the Moon a few days after Firefly. But the tall, spindly lander face-planted in a crater near the south pole and was declared dead within hours. Resilience was targeting the top of the Moon, a less treacherous place than the shadowy bottom. The ispace team chose a flat area with few boulders in Mare Frigoris or Sea of Cold, a long and narrow region full of craters and ancient lava flows that stretches across the near side's northern tier. Plans had called for the 7.5ft Resilience to beam back pictures within hours and for the lander to lower the piggybacking rover onto the lunar surface this weekend. Made of carbon fibre-reinforced plastic with four wheels, ispace's European-built rover — named Tenacious — sported a high-definition camera to scout out the area and a shovel to scoop up some lunar dirt for Nasa. The rover was going to stick close to the lander, going in circles at a speed of less than one inch per second.
