El Nino Watch
sla_pacific_east_minus_west = sla_nino34 minus sla_west_pacific.
Indices
The difference between the sea level in the central-east equatorial Pacific and in the western Pacific warm pool, in cm.
Limits. A simple two-box difference, not an official index.
Positive and large = the Pacific is tilted the El Nino way (water piled up in the east). On 2026-09-22 it was about +45 cm. Near zero or negative = neutral or La Nina.
Global sea level rise is in both boxes and cancels out, so this is a clean ENSO signal that reacts to wind changes within days.