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The Yellow Flames of Texas

<p>Texas just suffered through its hottest summer on record and its driest year in more than a century, which sparked wildfires that have burned nearly 1,400
The Yellow Flames of Texas
The Yellow Flames of Texas

Texas just suffered through its hottest summer on record and its driest year in more than a century, which sparked wildfires that have burned nearly 1,400 homes to date.

Now that firefighters say they're finally getting the upper hand, Texas has gotten some bad news from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: La Niña is back.  La Niña, of course, is an ocean-atmosphere phenomenon that occurs when the surface temperature of the Pacific Ocean is on the cool side, and it means drought conditions in the American Southwest (I'll be honest -- I don't understand exactly why). The most recent La Niña period ended in May, and now just a few months later NOAA says it's back.