Climate pattern

A mode of variability is a pattern of climatic change with identifiable characteristics, specific regional effects, and often oscillatory behavior.

Measured via an empirical orthogonal function analysis, the mode of variability with the greatest effect on climates worldwide is seasonal change, followed by El Niño-Southern Oscillation, followed by thermohaline circulation.

Other well-known modes of variability include:

• The Antarctic oscillation
• The Atlantic multidecadal oscillation
• The Madden–Julian oscillation