--- description: El Niño has strengthened and peak in the late fall and last until the spring, bringing relief to California regions affected by drought. title: El Niño California Drought: NOAA Meteorologists Predict Strong Storm image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta8808eda7eaef068/69885a513c163915e5458c38/california-drought.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [weather](/tag/weather/) ## weather Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Strong El Niño Set to Bring California Drought Relief ## Video: Is Climate Change Causing Extreme Weather? [Watch (HLS stream): Is Climate Change Causing Extreme Weather?](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/LQufbOt9.m3u8) (2:04)  _Published 2013-11-11. Is the frequency of extreme weather events a sign that global warming is gaining pace and exceeding predictions? Climate scientist Bill Patzert explains._  by [Justin Worland](/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Senior Correspondent Jul 9, 2015 9:26 PM CUT  Irrigation pipes sit along a dried irrigation canal on a farm near Stockton, Calif. on May 18, 2015. Irrigation pipes sit along a dried irrigation canal on a farm near Stockton, Calif. on May 18, 2015.Rich Pedroncelli—AP  by [Justin Worland](/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Senior Correspondent Jul 9, 2015 9:26 PM CUT El Niño has strengthened and will likely peak in the late fall and last until the spring, bringing much-needed relief to regions in California affected by drought, federal weather officials said Thursday. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said there is now a 90% chance that El Niño will last through the winter and an 80% chance it will last into spring 2016. “The stronger this event becomes, the more confident that next winter we’ll see stronger precipitation in California and the whole southwestern United States,” said Mike Halpert, an official at NOAA. In previous strong El Niño events, California has seen a 150% to 200% increase in rainfall compared to average years, according to Halpert. Peak rainfall during El Niño typically occurs in late fall or early winter. At the same time, parts of the U.S. located far from the Western seaboard may experience a decline in precipitation. For California, though, the relief couldn’t come soon enough. The state received the least precipitation in decades in 2014, following years of similarly low rain levels. Still, despite the strong predictions, Halpert says it’s worth withholding excitement over the storm. “There’s still a little ways to go before we get to where this event should peak,” he said. **Read More**: [Why Some California Cities Are Bracing for a Bear Invasion](http://time.com/3912675/california-bear-invasion/ "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3952081/el-nino-california-drought-noaa/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3952081/el-nino-california-drought-noaa/"},"headline":"Strong El Niño Set to Bring California Drought Relief","datePublished":"2015-07-09T21:26:24.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T09:07:28.231Z","description":"For California, the relief couldn't come soon enough","url":"https://time.com/3952081/el-nino-california-drought-noaa/","keywords":["weather"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta8808eda7eaef068/69885a513c163915e5458c38/california-drought.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Justin Worland","jobTitle":"Senior Correspondent","url":"https://time.com/author/justin-worland/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta8808eda7eaef068/69885a513c163915e5458c38/california-drought.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"California Drought Water Cuts","caption":"California Drought Water Cuts","creditText":"Rich Pedroncelli—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/weather/","name":"weather"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3952081/el-nino-california-drought-noaa/","name":"Strong El Niño Set to Bring California Drought Relief"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Is Climate Change Causing Extreme Weather?","description":"Is the frequency of extreme weather events a sign that global warming is gaining pace and exceeding predictions? 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