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LA NIÑA CONTRIBUTES TO FLOODING IN SOUTH AMERICA
Persistent heavier-than-normal rains over the past several weeks have triggered
flooding across parts of northern South America and are being attributed to the
current La Niña conditions in the Pacific. Even though it is the middle of the
rainy season and flooding is not unusual, the effects have been enhanced by the
cooler-than-normal ocean surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific
that are associated with La Niña. So far the flooding is being blamed for at
least 52 fatalities in Bolivia, 19 in Peru, and 16 in Ecuador. The TRMM-based,
near-real time Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at the NASA Goddard
Space Flight Center is used to monitor rainfall over the global Tropics. MPA
rainfall totals are shown here for northwestern South America for the period
5 February to 4 March 2008. The highest rainfall totals for the period (shown
in red) are on the order of 600 mm (~24 inches) and occur over central Bolivia
along the eastern slopes of the Andes. Rainfall in excess of 300 mm (~12 inches,
shown in yellow) extends farther northward along the mountains up into Peru as
well as over the Amazon Basin. The current La Niña conditions are expected to
persist at least through northern hemisphere spring.
The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) is a joint mission between NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).
Images by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) Caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC)
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