A new type of El Nino called El Nino Modoki appeared in the news. In this context, consider the following statements: 1. Normal El Nino forms in the Central Pacific ocean whereas El-Nino Modoki forms in Eastern Pacific ocean. 2. Normal EI Nino results in diminished hurricanes in the Atlantic ocean but El Nino Modoki results in a greater number of hurricanes with greater frequency. Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?

Statement 1 is incorrect: the canonical (normal) El Niño is characterized by anomalous warming in the eastern equatorial Pacific, whereas El Niño Modoki (a central-Pacific or CP event) has peak warming in the central tropical Pacific with cooling to east and west [1]. Statement 2 is correct: canonical El Niño events tend to suppress Atlantic hurricane activity (via increased upper-level winds and vertical wind shear), reducing frequency and intensity in the Atlantic basin [2]. El Niño Modoki exhibits a displaced and generally weaker atmospheric teleconnection; in some years it does not produce the same suppression and can allow a relatively higher Atlantic hurricane count (i.e., “more room for a bumper crop”) compared with canonical events [3]. Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Sources

1. [1] Physical Geography by PMF IAS, Manjunath Thamminidi, PMF IAS (1st ed.) > Chapter 29: El Nino, La Nina & El Nino Modoki > El Nino Modoki > p. 413
2. [2] https://www.climate.gov/news-features/blogs/enso/impacts-el-nino-and-la-nina-hurricane-season
3. [3] https://news.ucar.edu/962/watching-modoki