Weather West

California is accelerating preparations for a massive Kelvin wave and predicted sea level rise, according to a report in the Guardian. The story links the threat to El Niño-Southern Oscillation dynamics, with concerns focused on coastal flooding and extreme weather along the US West Coast.

A Kelvin wave — a pulse of unusually warm water moving eastward along the equatorial Pacific — is being reported as a potential threat to California, with coverage explaining what the phenomenon is and what it could mean for the state. Such waves are closely watched because they can influence El Niño conditions, shifting ocean temperatures and affecting weather patterns along the West Coast, including storms, rainfall and coastal impacts.

The World Meteorological Organization warns that El Niño will unleash multiple hazards across the South-West Indian Ocean region. The advisory points to heightened risks of extreme weather for countries along the basin, with the current El Niño event expected to disrupt normal rainfall and temperature patterns and increase the likelihood of droughts, floods and cyclones in the affected nations.