El Niño Is Bringing Kelvin Waves to California. Here’s What To Know
The last strong El Niño event, which took place from 2015-2016, had five Kelvin waves.
On the other hand, the 2022-2023 El Niño, did not produce strong Kelvin waves. That’s because a number of other weather events—including weak westerly winds—did not produce the kind of conditions meant to form them.
How are Kelvin waves linked to El Niño?
Kelvin waves commonly occur during El Niño years, when trade winds that normally push warm surface water toward the western Pacific weaken or change directions, moving warm water east and initiating a Kelvin wave.
There’s a lot of scientific debate about how climate change is impacting El Niño events. However, global temperatures trend higher during El Niño years, as warm water adds heat into the atmosphere. That, coupled with already record breaking global temperatures due to human caused climate change, has scientists predicting that 2027 is likely to be the world’s hottest year on record.
