Normally when broadcasters speak of El Nino they do so in regard to the hurricane season. Granted the atmospheric condition known as El Nino does have an effect on the tropical season in the Atlantic Basin it can also create weather issues during the winter months as well.

State Climatologist Barry Keim recently told the Louisiana Radio Network that because El Nino conditions in the Pacific are expected to remain strong if not get stronger over the next few months that will most likely play a part in the weather patter over our state during the late fall and winter months.

Temperatures tend to run about 2 to 3 degrees below normal during an El Nino event, precipitation tends to run about 25-percent above normal.

You might think that two or three degrees is not that big of deal. Trust me it can make all the difference in the world when the temperature gets close to the freezing mark. Here's what Keim had to say about that.

I did a little analysis for some sites across south Louisiana.  What I'm finding is that we're getting twice as many freeze days during an El Nino year than we do during a non-El Nino year.  That's incredible.

So don't be surprised if we see frozen precipitation or at least the potential of frozen precipitation at sometime during the course of the winter months. If it does snow you can impress your friends and tell them it's all the fault of El Nino.

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