La Niña conditions have emerged in the equatorial Pacific off the coast of South America. This is when the sea surface temperatures in this area turn cooler than normal. This shift in sea surface temperatures influences global weather patterns to a degree.

What does this mean for winter in the United States? While La Niña does create a slightly recognizable pattern across the US, the pattern is largely volatile. This is because the jet stream during La Niña winters in the US becomes more amplified. It's located farther north over the Pacific Northwest thanks to high pressure that develops in the Pacific, and then dives southeast across the Midwest and East Coast.

The jet stream is the driving force for storm systems. It determines where storms will flow from west to east, and determines

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