The Good and Bad of El Nino

“What’s new this month is that this could be one of the strongest El Ninos” since 1997, said Mike Halpert, deputy director of NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center in College Park, Md., during a monthly update on the El Nino Southern Oscillation weather pattern that was held August 13.

In a call with reporters Thursday, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration officials said they are expecting a strong El Nino in the fall and winter with effects of the event lasting into the spring months.

“That classic pattern of El Nino where warm water pools off the west coast of South America will shift the jet streams that bring storm tracks in the winter time to southern California and the desert southwest a little further north, bringing some much needed rain and snow pack for that region”, NASA Scientist Doug Morton said.

Chances are 50-50 of the El Nino delivering a wet winter, said California’s state climatologist Michael Anderson.

The desire for spectacular rain and snowfall is perhaps greatest in agricultural areas like Kings County that rely on water to keep the economy going.

Average land and sea-surface temperatures worldwide were 0.38 degrees above the 1981-2010 average, easily exceeding the previous record July anomaly of 0.30 degrees set in 1998, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. “At this point there’s no cause for rejoicing that El Nino is here to save the day”.

Ms Griffiths says as El Nino intensifies towards the end of the year, New Zealand will experience a cold and stormy spring, followed by a dry summer for the east of the country.

“Right now, it’s too soon to tell which one will win”, Mead said in an email.

The “Godzilla” El Nino is predicted to be the strongest such weather event on record and could have a significant impact on temperatures and precipitation this winter.

You know the old saying, you have to take the good with the bad.

The latest El Nino is already being blamed for floods in Chile and drought conditions in the Philippines, Indonesia and Australia.

Currently, ocean temperatures in the Pacific are hitting record highs and still climbing.

Problem is that along with the benefits of a strong El Nino, as in lots of rain to help, there also is flooding and sometimes damaging surf and mudslides.