El Niño Could Kick Off in 1-2 months

The El Niño weather phenomenon is favored to occur in the next 1-2 months and last into next spring in the Northern Hemisphere, the Climate Prediction Center (CPC), an agency of the National Weather Service, said on Thursday.

The forecast marks the strongest prediction yet from the U.S. weather forecaster after CPC went on El Niño watch earlier this year.

"This El Niño will likely remain weak throughout its duration," CPC said in its monthly forecast.

El Niño, the warming of sea surface temperatures in the Pacific, can cause flooding and heavy rains in the United States and South America and can trigger drought conditions in Southeast Asia and Australia.

Reporting by Chris Prentice