Higher sea surface temperatures warm the atmosphere during the El Niño phase, resulting in greater convection and rainfall over Eastern Africa. By contrast, a continental high-pressure system dominates Southern Africa and suppresses regional atmospheric convection and rainfall (Mulenga et al., 2003).
How El Niño affect summer rainfall in South Africa?
Correlation with El Nino Southern Oscillation is statistically significant for all summer rainfall areas. El Nino triggers drought and low streamflows and La Nina lead to high rainfall and high streamflows for all summer rainfall areas.
What does El Niño mean for South Africa?
El Nino is a change in weather patterns caused by the warming of the Pacific Ocean near the equator, off the coast of South America. … The current El Nino phenomenon is the strongest and longest in 35 years. The El Nino that hit Southern Africa has affected predominantly the food security of people in this region.
How does El Niño and La Niña affect South Africa?
In southern Africa’s summer rainfall region, El Niño brings drought and La Niña brings rain, warmer minimum temperatures and warmer maximum temperatures (good agricultural conditions but also conditions under which parasites flourish.
How does El Niño affect Africa’s climate?
El Niño is commonly linked to droughts in southern Africa and extreme rainfall in eastern Africa. … Drought and flooding in sub-Saharan Africa are often considered most closely in relation to risks to agriculture. But increasing urbanisation is changing the nature of climate risk in the region.
How does El Niño affect economy?
These extreme weather conditions can constrain the supply of rain-driven agricultural commodities, lead to higher food prices and inflation, and may trigger social unrest in commodity-dependent countries that rely primarily on imported food.
How does El Niño affect water supply?
During an El Niño event, the surface waters in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean become significantly warmer than usual. … It also reduces the upwelling of cooler, nutrient-rich waters from the deep—shutting down or reversing ocean currents along the equator and along the west coast of South and Central America.
How does El Niño affect people?
Severe drought and associated food insecurity, flooding, rains, and temperature rises due to El Niño are causing a wide range of health problems, including disease outbreaks, malnutrition, heat stress and respiratory diseases. …
How does El Niño affect economy in Africa?
El Nino Impacts (2015/16 Season)
– Reduced crop yields – Cattle deaths – Low dam levels due to less inflows – Sectors affected include food security, livelihoods, agriculture, livestock, nutrition, health and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH).
How does El Niño affect South America?
Climate impacts of El Niño Phenomenon in Latin America and the Caribbean. … In Central America, El Niño leads to excessive rainfall along the Caribbean coasts, while the Pacific coasts will remain dry. Rainfall increases on the coasts of Ecuador, the northern part of Peru, and southern zones of Chile.
How does La Niña affect Southeast Asia?
The La Niña phenomenon is the reverse of the El Niño where cooler waters develop over the Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean along the coast of South America. In South East Asia, higher than normal rainfall tends to occur during a La Niña episode which may result in an increased occurrence of floods.
How does La Niña affect East Africa?
La Niña is driven by the cooling of ocean temperatures in the eastern Pacific sea, causing dry spells in eastern Africa. … As described in my book, Drought Flood Fire, typically eastern East Africa receives two rainy seasons every year, October to December and March to May.
Which has more negative effects El Niño or La Niña?
Overall, El Niño contributes to more eastern and central Pacific hurricanes and fewer Atlantic hurricanes while, conversely, La Niña contributes to fewer eastern and central Pacific hurricanes and more Atlantic hurricanes..
How does El Niño affect agricultural production in Southern Africa?
The drought conditions due to El Niño have a direct negative impact on maize production and long term crop production statistics analysis carried out by WFP show that drops in maize yield are clearly more frequent during El Niño seasons particularly for South Africa (largest producer) and Zimbabwe (most food insecure).
How does El Niño cause drought in South Africa?
Wanders: “The stronger the El Niño signal, the less water is available in the region. … These lower discharges also have a direct influence on water storage levels in the reservoirs. If there is a continuous shortage of water feeding the reservoirs, this will inevitably lead to water shortages and thus drought.