News
03/01/2022, 1:50 pm EST

Knowing U.S. Springtime La Nina Rainfall Patterns

Next week (Mar. 6-10) features a La Nina-style rainstorm across the Mid-South U.S. according to ECMWF. The event is reminiscent of a wetter La Nina climatology for the East-central/Mid-south U.S. largely due to the warmer oceans of the middle latitudes occurring with modern-day La Nina episodes.
02/08/2022, 8:15 am EST

New Factors Causing Hostile Argentina/Brazil Climate Regime of Summer 2021-22 So Far

An unusually hostile climate pattern has emerged in South America during the 2021-22 warm season. Anomalous heat and dryness have propelled a drought in Paraguay to Southeast Brazil to Northern Argentina while excessive rains have plagued Brazil. While La Nina has contributed to this pattern, the more likely specific catalyst is the semi-permanent upper-level low-pressure trough southeast of Brazil extending northwestward into Brazil to cause convective rains compensated for by subsidence on the back side of that rainfall and centered on Paraguay and Argentina to cause just-the-opposite climate pattern – dryness and heat to accelerate drought.
12/28/2021, 4:57 am EST

The Climate Drivers Leading to Historic Flooding in Brazil

To the north of a blocking high-pressure system stretched west-to-east across southern portions of South America, two cutoff upper-level low-pressure systems have formed. One low is southeast of Brazil and is causing historic rainfall across Brazil. A second upper low is off the West Coast of South America causing the heavy rain pattern to arc westward. The upper-level features are reflected in the regional SSTA pattern. These conditions are likely to last into January causing more excessive rainfall in Brazil.
11/28/2021, 10:01 am EST

“Warm Blobs” Shaping the Southern Hemisphere Early Summer Climate Pattern

Climate Impact Company continues to stress recent emergence of warm SSTA regions outside of the tropics commonly referred to as “warm blobs” and their influence on the regional (and hemispheric) climate patterns which are as important as the influence of ENSO. The character of climate patterns associated with “Warm blobs” is slow-moving and therefore more impactful.