Tropical
Highlights - May 2023
During May
2023, sea surface
temperatures (SSTs) were above-average in much of
the equatorial Pacific (Fig. T18). The latest monthly Niņo indices were +2.0C for
the Niņo 1+2 region, +0.5C for the Niņo 3.4 region and +0.9C for the Niņo 3 region (Table T2). The depth of the oceanic thermocline
(measured by the depth of the 20C isotherm) was above-average across the
equatorial Pacific (Figs. T15, T16). The
corresponding sub-surface temperatures were 1-6C above-average in the far
eastern equatorial Pacific (Fig. T17).
Also during May, the lower-level wind
anomalies were westerly over the western equatorial Pacific and the upper-level
wind anomalies were westerly over the eastern equatorial Pacific (Figs. T20, T21). Meanwhile, tropical convection was enhanced
along the equator and suppressed over Indonesia (Fig. T25). Both the traditional SOI and
the equatorial SOI were -1.0 in May. Collectively, these oceanic and
atmospheric anomalies were consistent with El Niņo conditions.
For the latest status of the ENSO
cycle see the ENSO Diagnostic Discussion at:
http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/analysis_monitoring/enso_advisory/index.html
www.nws.noaa.gov
