Federal forecasters are still predicting a highly active Atlantic hurricane season thanks to near-record sea surface temperatures and the possibility of La Nina.

Get ready for what nearly all the experts think will be one of the busiest Atlantic hurricane seasons on record thanks to unprecedented ocean heat and a brewing La Nina.

Forecasters say this year's hurricane season for waters around Hawaii will likely be “below normal” with one to four tropical cyclones across the central Pacific region.

Morning 4 is a quick roundup of stories we think you should know about to start your day.

A very strong El Nino is at least partially responsible for the warmest winter on record in Michigan this past year. There is growing certainty that the current El Nino ocean condition is fading and being replaced by La Nina.

Morning 4 is a quick roundup of stories we think you should know about to start your day.

A very strong El Nino is at least partially responsible for the warmest winter on record in Michigan this past year. There is growing certainty that the current El Nino ocean condition is fading and being replaced by La Nina.

After months of gradually warming sea surface temperatures in the tropical Pacific Ocean, NOAA officially issued an El Nino advisory Thursday and stated that this one might be different than the others.

The world's oceans are suddenly considerably hotter than just a month or two ago and well above record levels.

Experts say a natural La Nina weather pattern, unusually warm moist air juiced by climate change, and long-term shift in where tornadoes hit all are factors in Thursday's devastating tornado in Alabama.

Government science teams say that 2022 didn't quite set a record for heat, but it was in the top five or six warmest on record depending on who's doing the measuring.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO), a specialized agency within the United Nations, just released statistics confirming that Earth’s unusual warming continued in 2022, despite the ongoing La Nina in the Pacific.

New Zealand had its hottest year on record in 2022, beating a mark set just a year earlier thanks to a combination of natural weather cycles and manmade global warming, according to the agency that monitors temperatures.

The U.N. weather agency is predicting the phenomenon known as La Nina is poised to last through the end of this year, a mysterious “triple dip” — the first this century — caused by three straight years of its effect on climate patterns like drought and flooding worldwide.

Federal meteorologists say this hurricane season may not be quite as busy as they initially thought, but it should still be more active than normal.

A culmination of unique events led to the recent extensive flooding in the Yellowstone region.

Australia has sweltered through its fourth-hottest year on record despite the usually cooling impact in recent months of the La Nina climate pattern, the nations weather bureau said on Friday, Jan. 8, 2021. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft,File)CANBERRA – Australia sweltered through its fourth-hottest year on record last year despite the recent return of the usually cooling La Nina climate pattern, the nation’s weather bureau said on Friday. La Nina, the cooler flipside of the better known El Nino, was declared in the Pacific Ocean in September. La Nina occurs when equatorial trade winds become stronger, changing ocean surface currents and drawing up cooler deep water. The hottest temperature in Australia for 2020 was 48.9 degrees Celsius (120 degrees Fahrenheit) recorded at the height of the wildfire emergency at Penrith in New South Wales state on Jan. 4.

BERLIN – The La Niña climate phenomenon has developed and is expected to last into next year, affecting temperatures, precipitation and storm patterns across the world, the U.N. weather agency said Thursday. A La Niña usually means a more active Atlantic hurricane season, with more and perhaps stronger storms. The World Meteorological Organization in Geneva said La Niña, characterized by abnormally cold sea surface temperatures in the eastern Pacific Ocean, is “expected to be moderate to strong” this year. The global declaration of a La Niña event is used by governments to help plan responses in vulnerable sectors like agriculture, health, water resources and disaster management, the WMO said. This year’s La Niña is expected to bring drier than usual conditions to East Africa during the planting season, which the U.N. weather agency called “a further worrying development which may add to the food security challenges in the region.”In North America, La Niña typically brings more rain to the north of the continent and less to the south.

Two-thirds of the United States should get a warmer than normal winter, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted. Only Washington, northern Idaho, Montana, the Dakotas and northwestern Minnesota, will get a colder than normal winter, forecasters said. The rest of the nation will likely be closer to normal, NOAA said. Judah Cohen, a winter weather specialist for the private firm Atmospheric Environmental Research, sees a harsher winter for the Northeast than NOAA does. But he said La Nina is the strongest indicator among several for what drives winter weather.

Youve likely heard the terms El Nio and La Nia, but in case you dont know, heres a quick breakdown of what they are:El Nio and La Nia are the warm and cool phases of a recurring climate pattern across the tropical Pacificthe El Nio-Southern Oscillation, or ENSO for short. El Nio & La Nia (El Nio-Southern Oscillation) (NOAA)The pattern can shift back and forth irregularly every two to seven years, and each phase triggers predictable disruptions of temperature, precipitation, and winds. This year, we could have a La Nia: A cooling of the ocean surface, or below-average sea surface temperatures (SST), in the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. During a La Nia winter, the arctic jet moves south and typically brings above-average precipitation to our region. La Nia watch continues.

Once Bertha passes by, skies should become partly cloudy, and scattered thunderstorms are possible by late afternoon / early evening...some of which could have torrential downpours. It will be another hot and humid day, with highs generally near 80 degrees (27 degrees Celsius), and a south wind at 5 to 10 mph. Sunday will be a "sun day," with light wind and highs in the mid 60s (18 to 19 degrees Celsius). Partly cloudy with a chance of thunderstorms on Tuesday, and highs in the low to mid 70s (23 to 23 degrees Celsius). Partly sunny with a chance of thunderstorms on Wednesday, and highs near 80 degrees (27 degrees Celsius).