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Posts Tagged ‘La Niña’

Sea Surface Temps & Weather Forecasts Match Up

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There is little doubt at this point if we’re about to experience another La Niña winter, though the intensity of the event is still unclear. As the astute weather watchers will recall, 2010 was a strong La Niña event (which means ocean temperatures in the equatorial Pacific are cooler than normal. Conversely, an El Niño event is marked by ocean temperatures in the same region being warmer than normal.) As we begin to transition into the fall period, the current La Niña event appears to be developing rather weakly. Here’s what the current sea surface temps look like, the key area…
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March Weather and Its Impact on Western Hydro

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The winter weather pattern that was expected to hold true for the bulk of the season, particularly in January and February, has finally arrived.  There was broad consensus, leading-up to the onset of the winter season, that the moderate to strong La Niña would dominate the landscape, bringing with it mostly above average temperatures from TX to the Southeast, and more volatile temperature swings in the northern tier.  Due to arctic air masses that created a blocking effect during the last few months, the full effect of a La Niña winter was never fully realized and instead we experienced…
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Has Winter Heating Demand Peaked?

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A strong to moderate La Niña pattern typically results in warmer than normal winter temperatures in the Southeast and cooler than normal temperatures in the Northwest.  The 2010-2011 winter has brought extreme cold to much of the nation as Arctic Oscillator blocking continued to counteract La Niña conditions and push arctic air into the U.S. from Canada.  Current weather models point to strengthening La Niña conditions due to arctic blocking dissipating.  The expected result of this pattern shift should be a warmer balance of February and beginning of March forecast.  Strong warmth is expected over the Midwest during the next…
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Winter Weather Update

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Before the season began, meteorologists predicted a fairly mild winter due to La Niña conditions.  This pattern consists of cool Pacific water temperatures, which are currently around -1.5C below normal.  As we saw earlier this year, a typical La Niña means a bullish summer and active hurricane season.  The expected impact on winter weather is warmer than normal temperatures in Texas and the Southeast but colder than normal in the Northwest part of the county.  However, December 2010 didn’t quite fall in line with these predictions.  

The extremely cold temperatures that have been experienced the past month in the Eastern half of the U.S. are…
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What’s Happening With Tropical Storm Bonnie

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The depression in the Gulf developed into a tropical storm last night and moved across southern Florida today. The tropical storm, named Bonnie, is fairly weak with sustained winds only around 40 mph. If Tropical Storm Bonnie doesn’t dissipate over the weekend, it is expected to hit land near southeast Louisiana. No major impacts to production are anticipated. Traders appear to agree with this forecast considering that NYMEX Natural Gas prices are off 6 cents today to settle at $4.58 for the week.

No other tropical development is expected in the near term. However, 2010 is likely to have an active hurricane season…
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National Weather Service Predicts Above-Normal Temperatures Through Dec.

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The National Weather Service announced late last week that from August to October above-normal temperatures are likely for most of the lower 48 states except for the Pacific Coast, Northern Intermountain West region, and most of the Great Plains territory.

The National Weather Service also reports that the above-normal temperatures are likely to last into December for the Southern U.S. and the Northeast. The National Weather Service attributes this abnormal weather pattern to La Niña conditions, which are likely to develop by late summer.

The La Niña condition includes cooler than normal water temperatures in the equatorial Pacific, which is…
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