BREWING

El Niño Finally Forms, Bringing Unpredictable Spring Weather

El Niño is one of the biggest influences on weather in the United States and around the world.

The infamous climate agitator El Niño finally formed this week, climate scientists announced Thursday. “Weak El Niño conditions are present and are expected to continue through the spring,” the Climate Prediction Center said in a statement. El Niño is a naturally occurring warming of sea water in the Pacific Ocean, and is one of the biggest influences on weather in the United States and around the world. The phenomenon typically brings unusually stormy weather across the U.S. West and South. The West Coast has already been slammed by storms this week, which could be related to the forming El Niño. Wet weather is on the forecast for the next couple of weeks across the nation, part of which could be due to to El Niño. But federal forecasters say there’s no reliable way to predict what the system might mean for the spring thunderstorm and tornado season across the Midwest.

SCARY NEW WORLD

Scientists: Climate Change Makes Extreme Weather New Normal