Australia is on the verge of its fifth La Nina spell in six years - increasing the odds of rain and flooding.

It comes as the Bureau of Meteorology change the way they monitor the Pacific Ocean to match Sky News Weather Meteorologist Rob Sharpe.

Below, he provides a detailed explanation of how the Pacific could impact our weather.

Evolving science

La Nina and El Nino events are renowned across Australia and the world for their ability to change the typical weather patterns – driving floods and droughts.

But monitoring and predicting such events only has a short history.

The first ENSO (El Nino Southern Oscillation) forecast was made by Bill Quinn in 1973.

He incorrectly predicted an El Nino for 1975, when a La Nina eventuated.

Over the following years scientific understanding of EN

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