The ENSO Diagnostic Discussion just came out. Sea surface temperatures are solidly above average in the equatorial Pacific... so what's behind forecasters' decision not to declare El Niño conditions?

Alabama grower Myron Johnson talks about how learning to use seasonal outlooks for rain and temperature has made his operation more resilient to swings in climate, including those triggered by El Niño.

An El Niño means lots of rain for California, correct? Well, some of the time, but not always.

Warmer winters or hotter summers: which will have greater influence on U.S. energy demands this century?

Data searches can be frustrating... These strategies may help you find what you're after. As with any searching strategy, it's good practice to begin with some simple questions to narrow your search.

Earth is continually bathed in energy from the sun. A portion of the energy that arrives at Earth is reflected back into space, another portion is absorbed directly by the atmosphere, and the remainder moves through the atmosphere to the surface.

Models help us to work through complicated problems and understand complex systems. They also allow us to test theories and solutions. From models as simple as toy cars and kitchens to complex representations such as flight simulators and virtual globes, we use models throughout our lives to explore and understand how things work.

Global climate is changing. Our future climate will certainly be different than our present climate. Where, when, and how rapidly these changes will take place is still a matter of scientific study.

Some natural processes record the passage of time: for instance, layers of sediments accumulate over many years, and some of them preserve information about weather conditions during the time they were deposited. Throughout Earth's history, global and regional climate has changed on very long time scales, and many of the past conditions can be discovered by studying natural records.

You can use a number of software packages and Web sites to to access or generate image maps or graphs of historical climate data or future climate projections.