WASHINGTON (AP) — Farewell, La Nina, we barely got to know you. The La Nina weather pattern, a natural cooling counterpart to the more well-known El Nino, has dissipated after a brief three-month appearance. The weak La Nina, which emerged in January later than expected, has now disappeared, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) on Thursday.
Earth is currently in a neutral phase of the El Nino Southern Oscillation cycle, which is generally the mildest of the three states that influence hurricane formation, droughts, floods, and global temperatures. NOAA predicts that this neutral phase will persist for most, if not all, of 2025. This makes long-term weather forecasts somewhat challenging, as a major influencing factor is currently neutral and not pushing conditions in one direction or another.
La Nina is characterized by a cooling of waters in the central equatorial Pacific, leading to global changes in weather patterns. While La Nina typically results in more Atlantic hurricanes during the summer, this year it is not expected to play a significant role. In the United States, La Nina events typically bring drier conditions to the South and West, while causing increased rainfall in parts of Indonesia, northern Australia, and southern Africa.
Research has shown that La Ninas can be more costly than El Ninos and neutral conditions. Prior to this short-lived La Nina, the world experienced a prolonged three-year La Nina that concluded in 2023.
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