Likelihood of new El Nino increasing

WASHINGTON -- The disruptive El Nino weather system seems increasingly likely to develop anew, weather experts said Tuesday.

Scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said they have observed a slow trend toward El Nino, as below-normal sea surface temperatures in the central equatorial Pacific have given way to above-normal readings.

"This warming represents an early stage of El Nino's onset," said NOAA Administrator Conrad C. Lautenbacher Jr. "If the warming persists, it will be several more months before mature El Nino conditions develop."