We all know that nothing in the weather business is certain — witness the many occasions when dry days still carry a 10 percent chance of showers.
However, since the tail end of summer, the Pacific Ocean temperatures and barometric pressure patterns have been consistently pointing toward the development of El Nino.
Specifically, we have seen the eastern Pacific sea-surface temperatures trend warmer, running from 0.5 to 1 degree Celsius (ap­­proximately 1 to 2 degrees Fahrenheit) above normal. Along with that, the barometer relationship between the island of Tahiti and Darwin, Australia, as measured by the Southern...