Climatic phenomena
Climate Phenomena influence the entire agri-food supply chain
affecting agricultural production, the availability and quality of raw materials, processing and distribution activities, as well as market stability and food security. Monitoring these phenomena is essential for the early identification of potentially critical conditions and to support informed decision-making.
This page allows you to monitor the evolution of the world's major climate phenomena
through indicators on drought conditions, vegetation health,
precipitation, temperature, and El Niño and La Niña.
The analyzed data come from: USDA (United States Department of Agriculture), NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) and Met Office (UK's national weather service). Interactive maps, El Niño/La Niña event detection, calendar of the effects of El Niño and La Niña around the world, with these phenomena help users analyze their distribution and assess their potential effects on agricultural regions worldwide.
Global maps on drought and vegetation growth
The map on the left shows the Drought Risk Index, an indicator used to monitor soil conditions and assess the potential risk of water stress resulting from limited soil moisture availability.
The map on the right displays the Vegetation Condition Index (VCI), which also covers agricultural areas. This indicator measures the impact of recent climate conditions on vegetation and land surfaces by comparing current conditions with those observed during the same period of the previous year.
Global climate phenomena such as El Niño and La Niña can significantly influence the occurrence and intensity of these conditions.
Through the drop-down menu it is possible to select a geographic area to deepen the analysis on the climatic conditions in progress.
After selecting the area of interest, the following maps will be displayed:
The first map shows the total rainfall recorded, with the corresponding amount in mm. The following map shows temperature anomalies, expressed in degrees, representing the variation compared with the historical average for the area. The last map analyzes the situation of the minimum and maximum temperature, always expressed in degree Celsius.
Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
El Niño/La Niña event detection
The ONI index (Oceanic Niño Index) measures anomalies related to the ocean temperatures, allowing to detect the occurrence of El Niño or La Niña events.
- Index value higher than + 0.5 ° C: El Niño event
- Index value lower than - 0.5 ° C: La Niña event
Calendar of the effects of El Niño and La Niña in the world
The chart reports a summary of the effects usually caused by El Niño and La Niña.
The chart shows the effects that El Nino and La Nina events usually have in different parts of the world. Those effects can be summarized in two phenomena: drought (in red) and excessive rainfall (in blue). In the vertical axis we have the geographical areas affected by these phenomena, while the horizontal axis shows the months of the year. For example, If we refer to La Niña, Argentina is highlighted in red for the month of April. This indicates that drought conditions may be expected in Argentina during that month. In the event of an El Niño or La Niña event, the chart therefore provides an indication of the potential climate conditions expected Worldwide . This information can be analyzed along with the crop calendar for agricultural products, to have an idea of the possible impact on crops.