Lag correlation and singular value decomposition analyses reveal that the Pacific/North American pattern is correlated with eastward propagating sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies in the North Pacific. The eastward movement of SST anomalies is also clear in one-point lag correlation maps and longitude-time plot of low-pass-filtered time series. The timescale for the SST anomalies to travel across the North Pacific is ~1 year. It is speculated that the propagation is related to the air-sea interactions in the North Pacific. These findings provide observational support for the atmospheric bridge theory proposed by Lau and Nath <1994>. ¿ 1999 American Geophysical Union