Abstract
If events run true to form, the present El Niño is approaching a climax — which is why, acknowledging a Christmas connection, the phenomenon was so named. Predicting these events and their consequences is a daunting task, but there is progress to report.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Relevant articles
Open Access articles citing this article.
-
Extreme rainfall in Northern China in September 2021 tied to air–sea multi-factors
Climate Dynamics Open Access 01 August 2022
-
Precession cycles of the El Niño/Southern oscillation-like system controlled by Pacific upper-ocean stratification
Communications Earth & Environment Open Access 22 November 2021
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
References
Webster, P. J. & Lukas, R. Bull. Am. Met. Soc. 73, 1377–1416 (1992).
Webster, P. J. Rev. Geophys. 32, 427–476 (1994).
Philander, S. G. H. El Niño, La Niña, and the Southern Oscillation (Academic, New York, 1990).
Trenberth, K. Bull. Am. Met. Soc. (in the press).
Knox, R. & Halpern, D. J. Mar. Res. 40, 329–339 (1982).
Stockdale, T., Anderson, D., Alves, J. & Balmaseda, M. Nature (submitted).
Webster, P. J. et al. J. Geophys. Res. (in the press).
Epstein, P. ENSO Signal 2, 1–3 (1995).
Palmer, T. N. & Mansfield, D. A. Q. J. R. Met. Soc. 112, 639–660 (1986).
Ropelewski, C. F. & Halpert, M. S. Mon. Weath. Rev. 115, 1606–1626 (1987).
Charney, J. G. & Shukla, J. in Monsoon Dynamics (ed. Lighthill, J.) 99-110 (Cambridge Univ. Press, 1981).
Palmer, T. N. Proc. Ind. Natl Sci. Acad.A 60, 57–66 (1994).
World Climate Research Programme Scientific Plan for the Tropical Ocean-Global Atmosphere (TOGA) Programme WCRP Publ. No. 3 (World Met. Org., Geneva, 1995).
Hastenrath, S. Climate Dynamics of the Tropics Ch. 9 (Kluwer, Dordrecht,1994).
Cane, M. A. & Zebiak, S. E. Science 228, 1085–1087 (1985).
Zebiak, S. E. & Cane, M. A. Mon. Weath. Rev. 115, 2262–2278 (1987).
Houghton, J. T. et al.(eds) Climate Change 1995: The Science of Climate Change (Cambridge Univ. Press, 1996).
http://nic.fb4.noaa.gov:8000/research/cmb/climate_ocnanl.html
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Webster, P., Palmer, T. The past and the future of El Niño. Nature 390, 562–564 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1038/37499
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/37499
This article is cited by
-
Extreme rainfall in Northern China in September 2021 tied to air–sea multi-factors
Climate Dynamics (2023)
-
Interannual variability of the East Asian trough in summer
Climate Dynamics (2022)
-
Precession cycles of the El Niño/Southern oscillation-like system controlled by Pacific upper-ocean stratification
Communications Earth & Environment (2021)
-
Decadal variations of the transport and bifurcation of the Pacific North Equatorial Current
Journal of Oceanography (2018)
-
Interdecadal variations of the South Asian summer monsoon circulation variability and the associated sea surface temperatures on interannual scales
Advances in Atmospheric Sciences (2017)
