El Niño could accelerate global warming

You may have heard that La Niña and El Niño have a huge impact on weather patterns, especially in winter when we get most of the rain and snow.

During La Niña, sea surface temperatures are below normal in the Pacific Ocean near the equator. And a cold ocean means less evaporation, less cloud formation in the area, affecting the jet stream in the air that carries storm systems around the world.

Right now we are in the third year in a row of La Niña patterns, each of which has a different effect on the amount of rain we have received due to the position of the jet stream.

El Niño years tend to be the opposite. Warm sea surface temperatures lead to more evaporation, more clouds, and very active storm patterns that send more rain to the US South.

The area of ​​the bay, located on the very edge of this subtropical flow, could go in any direction. And new data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA, shows that as global temperatures rise, El Niño events could further increase that heat, potentially leading to more extreme droughts or rainstorms around the world.

El Niño is expected to develop in the coming autumn.