Watching El Niño - From 1996 to the Present

ERS-2 continues to monitor the status of the ENSO (El Niño Southern Oscillation) in the tropical Pacific ocean.

The Along-Track Scanning Radiometer (ATSR) on-board the ERS-2 satellite monitors the temperature of the ocean with high frequency. The animation below tracks the phenomenon from 1996 to the present. In particular, the sudden Kelvin wave at its onset in 1997 is clearly recognised.

In synergy with the ATSR instrument, the radar altimeter supplies data on sea level variations. The animation below shows what is known as an anomaly, and plots it from 1996 to the present.

For more information on the how the data used to track El Niño have been processed, see the ASST Information Page on the ESA catalogue server. Also see the ATSR Average Sea Surface Temperature page.