For all the concerns about a historic El Niño fueling epic storms striking California this winter, there is still a surprising amount of debate among experts about how bad it will actually be. Scientists are highly confident about the risk of coastal seawater flooding and beach erosion — fueled by rising sea levels and strong surf — with king tides coming around Thanksgiving, Christmas and Martin Luther King Jr. Day. But when it comes to predicting the power of winter storms, there is far less consensus. … On Thursday, the National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center said that El Niño is continuing to strengthen, with temperatures continuing to increase on the sea surface. There is virtually a 100% chance that this El Niño will be classified as “very strong.” … Some experts caution that very strong El Niños aren’t a 100% bet on massive floods for California. 

Other El Niño news:

• The Sacramento Bee (Calif.): The latest Super El Niño data is out. What to expect this winter in California
• FOX5/KUSI (San Diego): NOAA and Scripps Institute of Oceanography release latest information about Super El Niño
• Abridged – PBS KVIE (Sacramento, Calif.): Sacramento braces for a rainy weekend as El Niño winter approaches
• San Francisco Chronicle: The historic El Niño is bringing huge waves — and could reshape California beaches