El Niño and La Niña / Milankovitch Cycles

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What is El Niño?

Back

El Niño is a climate pattern characterized by the warming of ocean surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean, which can disrupt normal weather patterns globally.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-6

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What is La Niña?

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La Niña is a climate pattern that represents the cooling of ocean surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean, often leading to opposite weather effects compared to El Niño.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-6

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When do El Niño and La Niña typically occur?

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They typically occur during the winter months, around December and January.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-5

NGSS.MS-ESS2-6

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What is the Milankovitch Cycle?

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The Milankovitch Cycles are long-term variations in Earth's orbit and axial tilt that affect climate patterns over thousands of years.

Tags

NGSS.HS-ESS3-5

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What are the three main types of Milankovitch Cycles?

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The three main types are Eccentricity, Obliquity, and Precession.

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What does Eccentricity refer to in the Milankovitch Cycles?

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Eccentricity refers to the shape of Earth's orbit around the sun, which changes from more circular to more elliptical over a cycle of about 100,000 years.

Tags

NGSS.HS-ESS1-4

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What does Obliquity refer to in the Milankovitch Cycles?

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Obliquity refers to the angle of Earth's axial tilt, which varies between 22.1 and 24.5 degrees over a cycle of about 41,000 years.

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What does Precession refer to in the Milankovitch Cycles?

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Precession refers to the wobble in Earth's rotation axis, which affects the timing of the seasons over a cycle of about 26,000 years.

Tags

NGSS.HS-ESS2-2

NGSS.HS-ESS3-5

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How do El Niño and La Niña affect global weather?

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Both El Niño and La Niña influence global weather patterns, affecting rainfall and temperature distributions worldwide.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-6

NGSS.MS-ESS3-2

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What causes El Niño?

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El Niño is caused by the accumulation of warm water in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of South America.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-6