Inquirer file
MANILA, Philippines — La Niña, or the cooling phase of sea temperature, that led to intense storms in the country, has ended, state meteorologists declared.
“La Niña (cold phase) condition has ended,” the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said in its last advisory released on March 10.
“Most of the climate models predict that ENSO-neutral (neither La Niña nor El Niño) is favored from March through June this year with an increased likelihood of a transition to El Niño (warm phase) thereafter,” it added.
La Niña is characterized by unusually cooler than average sea surface temperature, associated with above-normal rainfall conditions across most areas of the Philippines.
Despite the end of La Niña, Pagasa said its “lag effect” may still cause “above-normal” precipitation in the coming months. The state weather service still warned of possible heavy rainfall, floods, and landslides.
“Although La Niña has already ended, its lag effect may still influence the probability of above-normal rainfall conditions in the coming months, potentially leading to adverse impacts (such as heavy rainfall, floods, flash floods, and rain-induced landslides) in some highly vulnerable areas,” the government weather service said.
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