By admin 
PHOENIX (AZFamily) — El Niño is defined by ocean temperatures in a specific area of the Pacific Ocean off the coast of South America.
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When temperatures in that region average 0.5 degrees Celsius or higher above the average for several months in a row, El Niño is declared, First Alert Meteorologist Pete Mangione explained.
A “Super” El Niño means that same patch of the Pacific is even hotter.
Check out the ‘El Niño’ Sonoran Sky podcast episode for more.
What El Niño means for Arizona winter
The latest NOAA outlook shows a better-than-normal chance for above-average rain and snow in Arizona this fall and winter. That could mean more storms, more mountain snow and potentially more travel challenges at times.
“The jet stream tends to bring storms through the southern tier of the U.S., so that includes Arizona,” said Nathaniel Johnson, a NOAA meteorologist. “So that tends to be good for the snowpack in the southern tier of the U.S. and parts of the Rockies.”
Mangione said skiers have reason to be optimistic. A review of the past four El Niño winters in Flagstaff shows snowfall was either normal or above normal in three of the four years. Only one of the past four El Niño events produced below-normal snowfall in Flagstaff.
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Mangione noted that while El Niño provides the ingredients for a more active fall and winter in Arizona, having those ingredients does not guarantee a stormy outcome.
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