SEA SURFACE TEMPERATURE (SST)

ENSO-neutral conditions continued during September 2008, as sea surface temperatures (SSTs) remained near-average in the east-central equatorial Pacific Ocean. SSTs remained slightly below-average in the central Pacific, and slightly above-average in the eastern Pacific. From west to east, the latest weekly SST index values range from - 0.2°C in the Niño-4 region to +0.3°C in the Niño 1+2 region. The subsurface oceanic heat content (average temperatures in the upper 300m of the ocean) continued to decrease in response to the strengthening of negative temperature anomalies at thermocline depth in the east-central Pacific. Although ENSO-neutral conditions have been in place since June 2008, the atmospheric circulation over the western and central tropical Pacific continues to reflect lingering aspects of La Niña.

Graphic from NOAA's U.S. Climate Prediction Center