El Niño Strengthens in November 2009

El Niño events typically create frequent and heavy snowstorms in the Sierra Nevada, which give extra opportunities to create photographs of the unique beauty of a snowy day in Yosemite. It would be interesting to see how may of Ansel Adams' beautiful snow photographs were taken in El Niño years. Fresh snow is a fleeting event in Yosemite, so get in before the storm, hunker down, and be ready for when the storm breaks. Snow starts melting as soon as the sun hits it, so the conditions that created classics like Ansel's Oak Tree and Snow Storm typically only last an hour or two!

Check out the visual from Nasa's Earth Observatory!