Science: A double whammy of weird ocean behavior washed over the world in 1997. The Pacific Ocean had already succumbed to an exceptionally strong El Nio, and then the Indian Ocean was hit fiercely by El Nios close cousin: the so-called Indian Ocean Dipole. Surface waters off the coast of Indonesia cooled and the oceans predominant westerly winds reversed, leading to catastrophic weather. Fires raged across a drought-stricken Indonesia, and floods across east African nations killed thousands.
Climate...