Jacksonville, FL — It’s “officially” spring according to the calendar & the Spring Equinox. Remember our seasons are controlled by the tilt of the earth. The sun is tilted toward the earth during the summer when our temps. are warmest thanks to the most direct sunlight over the Northern Hemisphere. Earth is at its *greatest distance* from the sun during the summer(!).
NOAA has declared the long-lasting - 3 years going - La Nina over. The map below shows sea surface temps. are still on the cool side of average over some of the Central Equatorial Pacific but dramatic warming is noted to the east all the way to the S. American coast. The model forecast - 2nd graphic below - shows a prediction for a potential El Nino (warmer equatorial Pacific waters) by mid to late summer into early next fall. That *could* be good news for the Atlantic hurricane season as an El Nino usually helps result in fewer hurricanes (but ultimately a season is remembered for any landfalling storms & how strong those storms are).
The National Hurricane Center has issued its storm summary on hurricane “Nicole” which has major impacts in Northeast Florida & Southeast Georgia as a late season Nov. storm. The full “Tropical Cyclone Report” can be found * here *. And you can check out the Buresh Blog “The Late Season November Nemesis that was Nicole” for forecast info., local impacts, pics & videos.