Forecasters Project Strong El Niño Event

Why it matters locally: A strong El Niño event could significantly alter weather patterns in Washington, potentially leading to warmer and drier winters in the western parts of the state and increased precipitation in the southern regions, impacting agriculture, water resources, and wildfire risk.

---

Forecasters project a developing El Niño event will register among the most intense recorded since 1950. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) began tracking these phenomena in 1950. El Niño involves a warming of the surface waters in the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. This warming influences atmospheric circulation, impacting weather patterns across various regions worldwide.