Speculation about a second straight stormy winter has already begun. And it starts with an expected shift from a La Nina pattern to an El Nino pattern in the Pacific Ocean. While that doesn’t guarantee a lot of rain and snow, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is currently predicting a 46-percent chance of a strong El Nino by November and 54-percent by January. El Ninos occur when ocean temperatures warm up. La Ninas, which have cooler temperatures, have been in effect the last three years. But Department of Water Resources Climatologist, Mike Anderson says Northern California tends to be in-between patterns, making precipitation predictions more difficult…

click to listen to Mike Anderson

Two of the three very strong El Ninos, during the winters of 1982-1983 and 1997-1998, were linked to some of the heaviest snowpacks in the state’s history. Also, major flooding. But Anderson says it’s too early to say what will happen…

click to listen to Mike Anderson

Anderson says there should be a better idea of what to expect by August. There have only been 26 El Nino events since 1951.