Mars' Effect on Earth's Niño Index.csv

The dataset represents the Niño Index split into two periods: when Mars-Earth distance was less than both Mars-Sun and Mars-Venus distances (Mars in range), and when it was not.We used NOAA’s Ocean Niño Index (ONI) dataset, which provides monthly sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies for the central Pacific Ocean from January 1950 to September 2024, based on a 3-month running mean. This dataset relies on SST anomalies derived from the Extended Reconstructed Sea Surface Temperature version 5 (ERSSTv5) dataset, specifically for the Niño 3.4 region (5 deg N-5 deg S, 120 deg-170 degW), which is a key area for monitoring El Niño and La Niña conditions.We found that the mean Niño Index values were -0.206 when Mars was in range, and 0.129 when Mars was not in range. An initial analysis with a t-test (p=2.24e-9, t=6.06, df=702, power=0.398, Cohen's d=0.407, two tail) indicated a potential significant finding. To ensure the robustness of this result, we adjusted the analysis for power=0.9, which increased p to 8.00e-6, which we present as the primary measure of significance in our study.<br><br>