Pullman residents can expect the weather on the Palouse to only get warmer for the next few weeks as El Niño-like weather continues to move through the region.

According to Washington State’s AgWeatherNet, in-the-air temperatures are expected to rise and stay in or around the 50s until mid-February.

“We’ve just been in a pattern in a lot of low pressure,” said Nick Loyd, meteorologist for AgWeatherNet. “The source of the air flow has been the air from sub-tropical area.”

Despite its features, it’s hard to say whether these are symptoms of a legitimate El Niño.

“We’re certainly in an El Niño-like pattern in terms of what we’ve actually seen,” Loyd said. “The broader scale pattern has been specific with warmer weather and not as much snow fall.”

He said the circulation of the ocean and atmosphere has a close connection that creates a bridge, leading to something similar to El Niño weather in the Pullman area.

Last January and February, the average air temperatures were 32 and 28.6 degrees, respectively.

Loyd said the current temperatures have not been anything record-breaking.

Reporting by Matthew Brunstetter