In this blog I talk a lot about El Niño because it has the most significant impact of any climate cycle on the climate of the Southeast.  You might be interested in the history of how El Niño was discovered and why it has the name it has.  I read a great article by Julia Busiek in BayNature describing the story this week.  You can read it here.

Winter impacts of El Niño.  Source: National Weather Service
Winter impacts of El Niño. Source: National Weather Service