A Gusher of Moisture Hoses California. Is El Niño Here?

http://youtu.be/R-6UMcz71qI Parts of drought-plagued California got hosed by a gusher of moisture streaming up from the tropics on Tuesday. As the chief meteorologist for Minnesota Public Radio put it, the copious stream of water vapor looks a whole lot like a "pineapple express," a low level jet of moist air flowing from Hawaii to California. This is a phenomenon that tends to occur during El Niño winters. You can see it in the animation above, made up of images from the GOES-15 weather satellite. Look for the broad streak of cloudiness that streams up from the tropics to southern California. In this case, the moisture is coming from the tropics a bit south of Hawaii. But I'm sure Californians are grateful for the moisture regardless of the exact source.