The Global Climate System: Climate System Monitoring

This report reviews the state of the global climate system and documents major climatic events and anomalies observed between December 1988 and May 1991. It is based on current scientific understanding and is intended to support the monitoring of global environmental change. The document analyses large-scale atmospheric and oceanic conditions across the atmosphere, oceans, biosphere and cryosphere, using long observational time series to identify departures from typical climatic patterns. It examines variations in temperature, precipitation, circulation patterns and sea surface conditions, and describes phenomena such as the Southern Oscillation, monsoon variability and tropical cyclones. The report also records extreme events including droughts, floods and major storms, while noting that limitations in the global observing system restrict some diagnostic analyses of climatic processes and relationships.