El Niño refers to the change in climate across the Pacific Ocean. Although it normally occurs every two to seven years, the El Niño phenomenon has taken place more often in the past three decades. El Niños have an effect on climate and weather around the globe. A single phase can last for about one and a half years and is often followed by an opposite climate pattern called, La Niña.
The term El Niño means “Christ child” and was first used by Peruvian fisherman. They discovered that in some years there were fewer fish around Christmas time.
In normal years, cold water comes from the Antarctic region and flows along the eastern coast of South America. A high-pressure area develops, warms the water on the surface and pushes it in a westward direction. In the western Pacific, the air becomes warmer. A low-pressure area forms and leads to tropical rainfall in Indonesia and northern Australia.
Because of this climate cycle cold water rises from deeper regions of the South American coast to replace the warmer water on the surface. This part of the ocean belongs to the richest fishing regions of the world because fish can find more than enough food.
文章來至:http://www.english-online.at/geography/el-nino/el-nino-climate-change.htm
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