EL NIÑO
we're in hot water now!
Weather, alongside war, is one of the most disruptive forces on the planet.
Recently, the media and the scientific community have placed extra emphasis on the
anomalies that have occurred during the past two years. These anomalies have been blamed
upon a weather phenomenon called El Niño.
Every year there are many gains and losses due to the fluctuations of the climate.
However, during El Niño years, the losses outweigh the gains greatly. Today, El Niño
lingers, and seems to be connected with droughts in Australia, Brazil, or India, reduced
incidence of tropical hurricanes of the USA, and floods in Peru. This site will explains
in simple terms what El Niño is, how it has been predicted and its far reaching impact on
all living matter in a fun and interactive way.
Introduction-
We suggest that you start with the section "Introduction" to become familiar
with some of the basic concepts that will be useful when understanding the causes of El
Niño. Included in this section is an interactive weather map which will teach you how to
read a weather map.
The Hype-
Proceed then to the second section, "The Hype", which will effectively explain
the effects of El Niño. Read the overview to get a sense of what an El Niño is, and then
read the other sections for further reading. Included in this section is a detailed
explanation of the word "El Niño" and its meaning, as defined by Michael H.
Glantz.
The Impacts-
Continue then to "The Impacts" which discusses in extreme detail the world wide
effects of El Niño. These effects range from environmental to economic to sociological
impacts. This section contains our exclusive interviews with 4 eyewitnesses, along with
interviews of some people who have benefited from El Niño. Also included are US and world
maps.
Interactive Timeline-
Advancing to "Interactive Timeline" will present you with an interactive
timeline from 1550 to the present. Here you can find every year in which an El Niño took
place and trivia such as the first El Niño year for which we have historical evidence and
the first year that El Niño received its name.
La Niña-
La Niña contains information about the upcoming La Niña event which has been forecasted
to be very strong.
Prediction Methods-
If you are wondering how these forecasts were made, then read the section entitled
"Prediction Methods", which contains in depth information on the TOPEX/Poseidon
Satellite. By reading our interactive guide to predicting local weather, you will be able
to astonish your friends by predicting upcoming weather.
The Preparation-
Do not forget to read the section labeled "The Preparation" which contains
authorized information from the FEMA about how to prepare and act during natural
disasters.
About the Site-
If you are interested to know how the site was put together and who the team members are,
visit this section. In this section is a list of those who we are greatly in debt to for
helping us with this site.
Forum-
We have included many ways for you to interact with this site. You can do so by
participating in our message forums, or you can come join us for one of our exclusive
interviews with El Niño experts in our chatting room, these interviews will be announced
through our weekly newsletter. If you have pictures, sounds, or movies which you would
like to share, you can do so by uploading them to our site and including a link to them on
the messaging boards.
Learn Anything?-
Just to make sure that you have been paying attention, we have included a section which
contains a word game and quizzes to test your knowledge on this weather phenomenon.
and much more...
This site was created by:
Beeneet Kothari beeneetk@writeme.com | Wei Min
Chin wmchin@pl.jaring.my | Robert Victor rvictor@suffolk.lib.ny.us
for Thinkquest © 1998