Climate change may make El Niño and La Niña less predictable

It could be harder to prep for some droughts, floods and other extreme weather in the future

a map showing El Niño over the Pacific Ocean

Brother-and-sister weather disturbances in the Pacific, known as El Niño (pictured) and La Niña, may soon lose touch with their cousins in the Atlantic.

Climate.gov/NNVL

Climate change may make it harder to predict the most severe of the El Niño and La Niña weather disturbances in the Pacific Ocean.