NOAA Just Redefined El Niño and La Niña

La Niña and El Niño are distinctions that work a bit like Groundhog Day, at least for surf-going folk. When declared, those in the eastern Pacific either demure or delight, respectively, at what surf forecasters predict will come. TL;DR: La Niña’s cooler temps bring dreary weather and fickle surf to the U.S.’s West Coast, and El Niño sends pumping surf on a warm-water conveyor belt across the Pacific.

But in a recent shift, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has updated what constitutes La Niña and El Niño.