Using data up to the end of April, 2003, forecasts were made with the nonlinear canonical correlation analysis model approach. Ensemble-averaged forecasts for the sea surface temperature anomalies (SSTA) in the Nino3.4 region at various lead times are shown in Fig.1, showing near normal conditions for the second half of 2003. The forecasted SSTA fields over the tropical Pacific are shown in Fig.2.

Figure 1. The SSTA (in degree Celsius) in the Nino3.4 area (170W-120W,5S-5N) predicted by the ensemble-averaged nonlinear model at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months of lead time (circles), with observations denoted by the solid line. Tick marks along the abscissa indicate the January of the given years. (The postscript file of Fig.1 is also available).

Figure 2. SSTA (in degrees Celsius) predicted by the ensemble-averaged nonlinear model at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months of lead time, corresponding to the four consecutive seasons starting with JJA (June, 2003- August, 2003). The zero contour is shown as a white curve. (The postscript file of Fig.2 is also available).