Above: Sea Surface Temperature anomaly map from NOAA/NESDIS. Note the La Nina building in the Pacific.
By Dr. Roy Spencer
Sea Surface Temperatures (SSTs) measured by the AMSR-E instrument on NASA’s Aqua satellite continue the fall which began several months ago.
The following plot, updated through July 29, 2010 shows that the cooling in the Nino34 region in the tropical east Pacific continue to be well ahead of the cooling in the global average SST, something we did not see during the 2007-08 La Nina event (click on it for the large, undistorted version; note the global SST values have been multiplied by 10):
“”” Joe Lalonde says:
August 4, 2010 at 3:52 am
Dr. Spencer,
The map shows a markedly large volume of area in the southern hemisphere cooling.
Through my own studies, climate DOES NOT CROSS the equator. “””
So if climate does not cross the equator, that would imply some sort of barrier at the equator; a barrier that is able to nullify the consequences of the seasons, with say the sun high in northern summers; leaving the south cold in the southern winters. Such a Temperature gradient would surely drive climate cross the equator.
The only way such a barrier could exist then would be if the equator acts like a mirror, so that any climate change in the northern hemisphere is reflected in the equator to form an image climate n the southern hemisphere; resulting in all zeros on the equator.
Which ever way you choose to think the net result is that climate did cross the equator; either by reflection, or simply conduction/convection.
Stephen Wilde says:
August 4, 2010 at 3:53 pm
“But they can explain most of the observed tropospheric warming and cooling”.
You said “can” not “do”; was that intentional?
GregL
It’s my natural caution.
I think they do but it’ll be a while before that can be proved or disproved.
Stephen Wilde says:
August 5, 2010 at 10:06 am
“it’ll be a while before that can be proved or disproved.”
So what you posted is speculation? Speculation by who pasted on what?
Yes. Greg, but speculation based on observations thus a realistic hypothesis, unlike AGW.
That’s where we disagree Stephen. I prefer to put my trust in science and peer reviewed research rather than speculative blog posts by non-experts in the subject matter.
So you trust stuff that doesn’t work ?
And which is wholly speculative despite hiding under cover of ‘science’ and ‘peer review’.
Got an issue with a specific item in the IPCC WG1 AR4 report?
Interesting that Nino 3.4 shows it. That segment of ocean sits directly on top of the equatorial countercurrent, the pathway that an El Nino wave follows on its way from west to east. It is easy to understand the La Nina that follows after the El Nino has come ashore and is retreating: water level drops behind it and cool water wells up. But in the middle of the ocean? Could this El Nino we just experienced be an El Nino Modoki or partly Modoki? If so, something had to block the countercurrent to cause its warm water to spread. After it overcame the obstacle and got going again cool water welling up behind it just may be the cause. I don’t know but these guys playing with satellites could easily check this out if they use my theory that has been out since December.