La Nina brings cold, El Nino brings hot. So what is the meaning of these names and what is the mechanism of influencing the world? Let's explain...
Any change in the Pacific Ocean profoundly affects the atmosphere of the entire planet. The waters in the southern half of this ocean have an average temperature. If the temperature of the waters rises above normal with an eastward current, this event is called El Nino, and if it drops below normal, it is called La Nina. So La Nina brings cold, El Nino brings hot.
Generally, in a normal situation, neither El Niño nor La Nina is a situation that lasts for years. It often subsides within a few seasons and turns into other conditions. Sometimes these events are very violent. For example, extreme El Niño events in 1998 and 2016 caused the average temperature of the earth to reach record levels. These periods, which lasted only one year, weakened and turned into a normal state and then La Nina.
But in 2022, La Nina struck our planet three times in a row. There was extreme heat on one side and deadly floods on the other. This is the first time this event has occurred in over a century.
So where do the names El Nino and La Nina come from?
El Nino is Spanish for "boy" or "brat"; La Nina means "little girl".
What is the 2022 La Nina Effect?
During La Nina years, as trade winds push the warm water off the coasts, more of the cold water at the bottom emerges. Forecasts for the cold and rainy coming winter months are also based on the effects of these years.
While it is expected that January will be harsh, mild weather is expected as of February. Because, after 30 years, the longest La Nina years will lose their effect.
La Niña is an oceanic and atmospheric phenomenon that is the colder counterpart of El Niño as part of the broader El Niño-Southern Oscillation climate model. La Nina is an air current that acts over the pacific ocean. It affects pressure systems over the Pacific.
As La Niña gets stronger, the world enters a cooling phase, and the amount of ice at the poles increases.
This is the main reason why it is cold in winter, especially on the west coast of the USA (California) as the world tends to cool. During the La Nina period, while the warm waters go towards the Asian continent, the air gets colder in the USA and other regions.