1997 and 2015 El Niño Sea Surface Temperature Anomalies

A brief comparison of changes in sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies between the major El Niño event of 1997-98 and the El Niño event emerging in 2015. The visualization depicts data from the NOAA 1/4° daily Optimum Interpolation Sea Surface Temperature (OISST). The data are combined from sources such as satellites, buoy networks, and ships. The OISST analyses are named for the key satellite sensor used: in this case, the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR). More about OISST/AVHRR: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oisst

Movies

Images

El Niño Comparison

Further Information

http://www2.ucar.edu/news/backgrounde…

Visualization and Postproduction

Matt Rehme (NCAR/CISL)

Special Thanks to Tim Scheitlin (NCAR/CISL)

Data Source

NOAA – National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration www.noaa.gov

Earth imagery is courtesy of the NASA Visible Earth Project

Visualization Software

The NCAR Command Language (Version 6.3.0) [Software]. (2015). Boulder, Colorado: UCAR/NCAR/CISL/VETS. http://dx.doi.org/10.5065/D6WD3XH5