date:May 25, 2012
El Nino conditions, which can parch Asia and bring cooler weather to the US, may develop this year as the Pacific Ocean warms.
El Nino is a warming of ocean surface temperatures in the eastern and central Pacific, the opposite of La Nina.
The El Nino phenomenon occurs every three to seven years, and strong El Ninos can lead to strong weakening of the trade winds that blow west across the Pacific, triggering drought in southeast Asia and Australia and parts of Africa.
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