WASHINGTON - The mild El Niño conditions that have prevailed in the Pacific in recent months seem to be weakening, climate scientists reported Thursday.
A transition from the weak El Niño to neutral conditions is expected to continue during the next three months, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Climate Prediction Center said.
El Niños are marked by warmer-than-normal sea surface temperatures in parts of the equatorial Pacific. Such warming changes wind and rainfall patterns and can affect weather worldwide, ranging from drought in Indonesia, Australia and Africa to storms in California and floods elsewhere.
The severe 1997-98 El Niño caused an estimated $20 billion in damage worldwide.
In its update on Pacific conditions, the climate center said sea surface temperatures decreased in all of the El Niño regions during February 2005, though some areas of warmer than usual readings remain.
Despite the movement toward an end of the current mild El Niño, the center said drier-than-average conditions prevailed over Indonesia and northern Australia during February, while increased rainfall persisted over parts of the central equatorial Pacific.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=s ... sc/el_nino
NOAA: Mild El Niño Weakens in Pacific
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