The cause of the persistent warmth has been an unusually active jet stream off of the Pacific Ocean. A west-to-east storm track brought mild air across the country, resulting in above normal temperatures for mostly every state.

La Nina is building in the Pacific Ocean, which is a signal for cool, damp springs.

When you get those kinds of conditions and you get a jet stream that is moving right into that area, that is exactly what we're looking for in environmental conditions that can produce a ... tornado outbreak like we had yesterday.

I would not say it was as wide as the Pacific Ocean, but a big river. But the differences have gradually been narrowed.

A convergence exists in the search for human excellence on both sides of the Pacific Ocean.

The culprit is the position of the jet stream and the inability of moisture from the Gulf of Mexico, therefore, to get over the central interior. And if there's no moisture, there's no rain.