Could The Northwest Return To El Niño?

Now that we have left the grip of La Niña, should the Northwest prepare for an El Niño?  Marilyn Lohmann with the National Weather Service says as we look ahead to the rest of 2018, the Northwest can expect drought conditions.

“And we’re starting to see some increased confidence that an El Niño is developing for next fall, with a 65% chance of it for next winter.  And an El Niño pattern for the Pacific Northwest can be dryer and warmer than normal depending on the strength of the El Niño and the overall pattern set up.”

In the coming weeks, they will look for years that reported similar El Niño patterns so the agriculture community might have a better idea what they are facing into the late portion of 2018 and early in to 2019.

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