El Nino continues to develop

The U.S. Climate Prediction Center’s most recent outlook (dated November 10) notes that the equatorial area of the Pacific Ocean has had warmer than normal temperatures for the past several months - a condition that indicates the early stages of an El Nino episode that is likely to persist through early 2005.

What are the expected impacts? The Climate Prediction Center offers these predictions:

- warmer than average conditions in the northern U.S. plains and in the West from December…