Tropical
Highlights - July 2020
During July
2020, sea surface
temperatures (SSTs) were below-average in the east-central
and eastern equatorial Pacific (Fig. T18). The latest monthly Niņo indices were -1.2°C for
the Niņo 1+2 region, -0.3°C for the Niņo 3.4 region and +0.1°C for the Niņo 4 region (Fig. T5, Table T2). The depth of
the oceanic thermocline (measured by the depth of the 20°C isotherm) was below-average
across much of the equatorial Pacific (Figs. T15,
T16). The
corresponding sub-surface temperatures were 1-3°C below-average in the far eastern
equatorial Pacific (Fig. T17).
Also during July, the lower-level wind
anomalies were easterly across much of the equatorial Pacific (Fig. T20).
The upper-level wind anomalies were westerly over portions of the western and
eastern equatorial Pacific (Fig. T21). Meanwhile, tropical convection was suppressed
across the western and central equatorial Pacific, and was near average over Indonesia
(Figs. T25, E3). Collectively, these oceanic and
atmospheric anomalies were consistent with ENSO-neutral 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