Oceanographic events during el nino.

El Niño events, the most spectacular instances of interannual variability in the ocean, have profound consequences for climate and the ocean ecosystem. The 1982-1983 El Niño is perhaps the strongest in this century. El Niño events usually have followed a predictable pattern, but the recent event differs markedly. The physical oceanography of this El Niño is described and compared with that of earlier events.