La Niña conditions in the Pacific Ocean may lead to sandals and sunglasses at Christmastime.
December typically marks the onset of winter, but you’d never know it by looking at California.
Mountain ranges lay blackened by wildfire as record heat scorched the Golden State through fall. Daytime temperatures in Los Angeles have hovered around 80 degrees through Thanksgiving. Southern California has experienced scant rain since February — with no precipitation in the forecast. And nearly all of the state is experiencing extremely dry or drought conditions again.
In a year beset by upsets, on comes La Niña with a seasonal gift of warm, dry conditions. Federal weather forecasters say there’s greater than a 90% chance such conditions will prevail across much of California and the Southwest this winter.
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