La Niña Conditions Expected to Develop, Bringing Potentially Record-Breaking Heat to the US

El Niño has officially ended and La Niña conditions are expected to develop over the summer and peak in September during the hurricane season. Above-average temperatures are forecast for most of the contiguous US this summer, even before La Niña fully forms. The western US is also likely to be drier than normal. La Niña summers following strong El Niño winters have historically been some of the hottest on record for the US. Intense heat is possible. The end of El Niño means less wind shear disrupting storms in the Atlantic, allowing more hurricanes to potentially form and impact the US coast.