As in the old line from the Laurel and Hardy movie " A lot of Weather we've been having lately."
Over this past year we've had the some rare weather - last Spring was the coldest in decades, July was the hottest on record and the winter was the wettest ever recorded. Now apparently we can expect some extra extreme weather due to that old phenomenon El Niņo.
This effect which was first noticed in the 19th century creates complex weather patterns linked to droughts, floods and crop failure.
The phenomenon occurs every three to seven years and some scientists say it could exacerbate the effects of climate change. The Australian Bureau of Meteorology is predicting a 70% chance of the pattern brewing over the next few months.
With the effects straddling two calendar years and being a global phenomenon, we can expect some more interesting weather this year and next.
