El Niño and extreme Atlantic Ocean heat are about to clash – the Conversation

Air Mass RBG imagery of Southeastern United States, June 1, 2023 (courtesy of NOAA-GOES-EAST public domain).

Globally, warm sea surface temperatures that can fuel hurricanes have been off the charts in the spring of 2023, but what really matters for Atlantic hurricanes are the ocean temperatures in two locations: the North Atlantic basin…This year, the two are in conflict – and likely to exert counteracting influences on the crucial conditions that can make or break an Atlantic hurricane season. The result could be good news…But forecasters are warning that that hurricane forecast hinges on El Niño panning out…