Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: El Niño‐Southern Oscillation (ENSO), where the central‐east tropical Pacific is unusually warm (El Niño) or cold (La Niña), is known to influence Australian rainfall. Here, we detail the extent of ENSO's influence on Australian monthly rainfall distributions and clarify its many complexities. We show La Niña to be a long‐lasting and wide‐spread intensifier of Australian rainfall throughout its lifecycle, particularly on extreme monthly rainfall. The reduction of rainfall during El Niño is comparatively limited; confined mainly to El Niño's developing phase and the southeast and northeast of Australia. A further complexity shows El Niño can intensify monthly rainfall during its mature phase. Within these broader impacts of ENSO are strong spatial and temporal differences, such that the expected rainfall impacts may not be consistently felt at the local‐scale. We propose methods to account for these complex climatic impacts at scales comparable to a river catchment scale.
Source: Geophysical Research Letters
DOI: 10.1029/2025gl118454
Institution: Monash University
Language: English
Subfield: Global and Planetary Change
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDG: Climate action
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,190
OpenAlex ID: W7117694062