Federal scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced a long-anticipated shift in a powerful global climate pattern on Thursday, (April 9th), as worry grows about global heat patterns.

NOAA says the La Nina climate pattern has officially come to an end, and that an El Nino is expected to develop later this year. This has major implications for weather worldwide, and could impact the hurricane season in both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

Some computer models that scientists use to forecast climate patterns said that the oncoming El Nino could be unusually strong, and have dubbed it a potential "Super El Nino," though federal scientists don't use that term.


El Nino, a natural warming of Pacific Ocean water that affects weather around the world, often leads to some of the hottest years on record, such as the record-breaking worldwide average temperature in 2024. The prospect of a strong El Nino has rattled forecasters, who fear an unprecedented wave of global heat into 2027.

Sea surface temperatures in Southern California are in the 60s, something not usually seen until early summer.

In the meantime, the planet is in an intermediate stage of the cycle, known as "ENSO-neutral."

According to NOAA, the just-ended La Nina started in December 2024, when Pacific Ocean water temperatures reached the La Nina threshold.

This La Nina shifted rainfall patterns, which included increasing dryness in the southern U.S. It also slightly cooled global temperatures, when compared with El Nino years, without affecting long-term global warming. La Nina also favored a more active Atlantic hurricane pattern and colder winters across portions of the northern U.S., USA Today reported.

Story Date: April 10, 2026