After the extreme winter weather of 2013-2104, it may be hard to imagine a summer with equal extremes. But if you like the tropics, you’re in luck. The Farmer’s Almanac – the quintessential predictor of all things dealing with Mother Nature – is calling for heavy rain and extreme heat. As the Almanac describes it: “Out of the freezer, (and) into the Fire!”

The DC-area’s 32 inches of snowfall last winter ranks it as one of the harshest winters, dating back to 1888 (when they started keeping records). Following the winter that would never end, the area needs to brace itself for scorching temperatures as early as the first few weeks of June (before summer even officially begins) The prediction for above average rainfall is one trend that deviates from the rest of the nation. 

If prolonged red-hot temperatures and rainy downpours weren’t enough to get you excited about the summer, there’s also a hurricane predicted to hit the Atlantic Corridor in early to mid-September.

El Nino 2014 might explain these extreme weather trends, or at least be a contributing factor. Every few years we experience an “El Nino” weather pattern, which according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), defines it as a “large scale ocean-atmosphere climate interaction linked to a periodic warming in the sea surface temperatures across the central and east-central Equatorial Pacific.” In plain English, when the waters of the Pacific Ocean become warmer than usual, crazy things happen with the weather.

Hot and rainy weather means one thing around here – make sure your air conditioning is up to the task!