La Niña Strengthens — And Global Sea Surface Temperature Rapidly Cool; West Antarctica’s Melt Is Coming From Below; Study Says Early-Holocene CO2 Matched Today; + The Met Office’s Phantom Data
The oceans are now the coolest they’ve been since 2017.
La Niña Strengthens — And Global Sea Surface Temperature Rapidly Cool
After a weak October, all Nino regions have cooled into La Niña territory. A strongly positive Southern Oscillation Index is likely driving it: sustained +SOI means stronger trades, more upwelling, and a clear shift into a cold ENSO pattern.
Subsurface data confirms the turn. The cool pool that nearly vanished in October has rebuilt quickly, and the warm patch east of the Dateline has disappeared. November’s upper-ocean analyses now show a classic La Niña structure returning.
Across the global oceans, SSTs are have taken a nosedive in recent weeks (below chart).
ERA5’s 60S–60N mean slipped to 20.40C on Nov 15, with NOAA’s OISST falling to 20.44C. The oceans are now the coolest they’ve been since 2017.
