During those years, Houston's average winter temperatures have been 1.7 degrees colder than in non-El Niño winters, a significant decrease. The effect on precipitation is also noticeable.

One major natural factor in global temperatures is the El Nino/La Nina oscillation — a cyclic warming or cooling of the equatorial Pacific that changes weather across much of the planet.

We ranked Houston's hottest years by using the highest annual average temperatures. Before Thursday, we found that 2024 was first at 73.1 degrees.

The first three months of the year brought an average temperature of 59.3 degrees, the 32nd-warmest average temp for that period in Houston's 136-year weather history.

But for precipitation in particular, the main driver usually is La Niña [or El Niño] when they are occurring," Michelle L'Heureux, a scientist with the Climate Prediction Center (CPC) told Newsweek.