The next time you hear someone mention El Niño or La Niña and you’re left trying to remember exactly what it means, you can check these diagrams from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA):
According to NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center, an El Niño pattern is likely to form in the period May-July and persist into and into next winter. If you’re a real weather nerd, you can read the explanation for yourself.
Unfortunately this doesn’t say much about Colorado’s future weather, as we seem to be hanging between “warmer” and “wetter.” Who knows, we could have a brutally cold, dry winter.
Will Rogers once advised, “If you don’t like the weather in Oklahoma, wait a minute.” But that was in Oklahoma. In Colorado it’s more like 30 seconds. (I know, I know, many people attribute a version of this quote to Mark Twain and others. But I grew up in Oklahoma. That’s what I was taught and I’m stickin’ to it.)
thanks for this –
🙂
El Niño Southern Oscillation is our thing – and our BOM has tons and tons of stuff about it. BOM recently had a hissy fit and announced it was not to be referred to as “BOM” but The Bureau. As the announcement was ignored by all, they gave up on a re-name.
I had to look up ENSO for a diagram. I’d never thought about what happens on the other side of the Pacific. LOL, yep, I can see how a reference to “BOM” would be hard to shake. One syllable is easier than three. And the public will have its way.
Acronyms are here to stay, an article of culture only likely to increase with technology, and obviously, bureaucracy. Fortunately there is an app for that, “acronym finder.” BOM: Bill of Materials, Bureau of Meteorology (NWS), Book of Mormon. Even (get this): Battle of Mice! Who knew?
I have to look up acronyms all the time, given the endless creations of people who text a lot. But Battle of Mice?? It might be related to a video game. I use a number of acronyms in that regard, and in context they are easy to decipher.
The formal style rule I learned decades ago was to spell out the name at first mention, then used the acronym thereafter if you wish.
(Just looked up Battle of Mice. It’s a rock band.)