El Nino looking more likely to emerge by heart of season

It’s starting to look more likely that El Niño, the atmospheric force that hampers hurricane formation, will emerge by August, the heart of the storm season, experts say. “I would say that a weak to moderate El Niño event developing by the end of July or early August would probably significantly blunt the season’s hurricane activity,” said Phil Klotzbach, a Colorado State University climatologist, who develops seasonal predictions. Klotzbach and colleague William Gray call for 5 hurricanes, including two major ones with sustained winds greater than 110 mph, during the 2012 season.