Okay, so there are ways to document the degree of El Niño or La Niña that is being experienced, what does this imply is happening? Well, changing surface conditions (sea surface temperatures) alter circulation in the atmosphere. Near the equator this shifts the locations most favorable for large scale convection (the rising of warm moist air to produce rainfall) [\ref{fig:walker_neutral} \ref{fig:walker_elnino}]. So affected regions will see notably higher or lower rainfall amounts than would be expected under other conditions. Effects are also felt elsewhere as shifts in strength and location of temperature gradients modify the variability of higher latitude circulation, and as conditions in other parts of the globe create their own responses and feedbacks. Results can be very direct, such as low fishing yields in Peru as a result of a lack of high nutrient deep water, to complex shifts from low to high rainfall in West Africa as a result of the length of time it takes local ocean temperatures to adjust to quickly spreading upper air temperature anomalies \cite{Parhi_2016}.