COP31 is in Antalya, Türkiye, where the 31st United Nations Climate Change Conference runs from November 9 to 20, 2026. The conference is under way: it opened on Monday, November 9, and UN News reported that it is set to close on Friday, November 20.

Place and dates

The place and the dates are stated on the United Nations page for COP31. Antalya is a city on Türkiye's Mediterranean coast, and UN News reported that nearly 200 countries are attending and that more than 90,000 people are expected there.

Who presides over COP31

Two countries hold the leading roles.

• Türkiye holds the presidency. Its environment minister, Murat Kurum, took the gavel as COP31 President on the opening morning, according to UN News.
• Australia leads the negotiations. Its climate change and energy minister, Chris Bowen, oversees them under what the same UN News report called a co-presidency arrangement agreed during COP30.

What the arrangement says

The Australian government set out the terms on November 23, 2025, after the agreement was reached at COP30 in Belem, Brazil. Under those terms, Türkiye physically hosts the COP31 conference and the World Leaders Summit in Antalya and was to be nominated for election as COP President. Australia is President of Negotiations from the end of COP30 until the end of COP31, a role the statement said carries "exclusive authority in relation to the negotiations", and it said Mr. Bowen would fill that role.

The same statement said Australia selects ministerial and other co-facilitators for the negotiations and identifies additional champions with Türkiye for the action agenda. It also said Australia, in partnership with the Pacific, would set the agenda for and preside over a special meeting before the conference, called a Pre-COP, to be held in the Pacific in 2026.

Australia's climate department describes the role as presiding over the COP31 negotiations at the summit.

What COP31 is

COP31 is the 31st Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, as the United Nations page describes it. COP30, the meeting before it, was held in Belem, Brazil, where the hosting arrangement for COP31 was agreed.

The 2026 Nobel Prize award ceremonies take place on December 10, 2026, in Stockholm and in Oslo, according to the Nobel Week 2026 programme on NobelPrize.org. The date is the same every year: the prizes have been presented on December 10, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel's death, since 1901, the site's page on the award ceremonies says.

Dates, times and places

The Stockholm times come from the press programme for Nobel Week 2026, which says all of its times are in Central European Time (CET). The Oslo time comes from the Norwegian Nobel Institute's event page for the peace prize ceremony, which gives the day as Thursday, December 10.

What happens in Stockholm

The prizes in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine and literature, and the prize in economic sciences, are awarded at the Stockholm Concert Hall, the page for the 2026 ceremony says. During the ceremony the laureates receive a diploma and a medal from the king, and representatives of the prize-awarding institutions give speeches, according to the press programme. The award ceremonies page names him as King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden. The banquet follows at Stockholm City Hall, where one laureate from each award category gives a speech of thanks.

What happens in Oslo

The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded in Oslo, Norway, as Alfred Nobel's will stipulated, while the other prizes are awarded in Stockholm, Sweden, the award ceremonies page says. The Norwegian Nobel Institute's event page says the 2026 ceremony includes artistic performances, a speech by Jørgen Watne Frydnes, the chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, and the Nobel lecture by the 2026 peace laureate, Navi Pillay. The institute's press calendar also lists a torchlight procession at 5:45 p.m. and the Nobel Banquet at 7:00 p.m. at the Grand Hotel on December 10.

The rest of Nobel Week

Nobel Week 2026 takes place at the beginning of December in Stockholm and Oslo, and many of its events will be streamed online, the Nobel Week programme says. It lists the Nobel Prize lectures for December 7 to 10 in Stockholm and Oslo, the Nobel Prize Concert for December 8 in Stockholm and the Nobel Week Dialogue for December 9 in Stockholm.

In Stockholm, the press programme puts the lectures in physiology or medicine at 14:00 CET and the lecture in literature at 17:00 CET on December 7. The lectures in physics, chemistry and economic sciences are on December 8 between 10:00 and 15:15 CET, with exact times still to be decided.

This page will be updated at this address if the organizers change the programme.

NOAA's U.S. Winter Outlook for December 2026 through February 2027 favors a warmer-than-average North and a wetter-than-average South and East, according to the release the agency published on October 15, 2026. NOAA said in the same release that El Nino will likely influence the winter months.

The outlook gives the likelihood that temperature and precipitation over the whole season will be above, near or below average.

Temperature

NOAA's release lists three temperature findings for December through February.

"Equal chances" means the odds of below-average, near-average and above-average conditions are similar to climatological probabilities, according to the Climate Prediction Center's seasonal discussion.

Precipitation

The release lists three precipitation findings for the same months.

Drought

NOAA said in the release that drought conditions are forecast to improve or end in the Southwest, the Southern Great Plains, the Southeast and parts of the East Coast. Drought is favored to develop or worsen across parts of the northern Rockies, along with northeastern Oregon and eastern Washington.

The role of El Nino

The Climate Prediction Center, the NOAA office that issues the seasonal outlooks, said in its discussion dated October 15, 2026, that an El Nino advisory remains in effect, that the event continues to strengthen and that the outlooks for the winter and spring are heavily influenced by it.

• The center's ENSO outlook gives an 80 percent probability that at least a strong El Nino continues through the January to March 2027 season, and it favors an El Nino of any strength continuing through the March to May 2027 season.
• The latest weekly value of the Nino3.4 sea surface temperature index was +2.4 degrees Celsius.
• The center said the Pacific jet stream shifts southward and eastward during El Nino events, which is the reason it gives for favoring above-normal precipitation along much of the West Coast and below-normal precipitation for much of mainland Alaska.
• The center said above-normal precipitation in the Southeast is one of the most reliable signals from El Nino events. Its odds for above-normal precipitation exceed 70 percent for some areas in the extreme Southeast and northern Florida through the January to March 2027 season.

What the outlook does not cover

The outlook does not project seasonal snowfall. NOAA said in the release that snow forecasts are generally not predictable more than a week in advance.

The Climate Prediction Center said in its discussion that the outlooks are meant to be used before the start of the period they cover, and that observations and short-range and medium-range forecasts should be consulted once that period is under way.

When the outlook is updated

The three-month outlook is updated monthly, and NOAA said in the release that the next update will be available on November 19. The Climate Prediction Center's discussion gives the same date, November 19, 2026, for the set of outlooks that will supersede the current one.

This page will be updated at this address when that update is published.

No. The Climate Prediction Center's latest ENSO diagnostic discussion, issued on October 8, 2026, lists the ENSO alert status as El Niño Advisory, not La Niña, and said a strong to very strong El Niño is likely through January to March 2027. ENSO stands for El Niño/Southern Oscillation, and the center publishes its diagnostic discussion monthly.

What the latest discussion says

The discussion said El Niño strengthened further in the month before it was issued and that the center's official outlook indicates it will continue to strengthen through the end of the year. It gave these details:

• A strong to very strong El Niño is likely through January to March 2027, with the chance remaining greater than 83 percent.
• Sea surface temperature anomalies exceeded +4.0°C in portions of the eastern equatorial Pacific.
• The Niño indices reached +2.1°C in the Niño-3.4 region, +3.0°C in Niño-3 and +3.9°C in Niño-1+2.

The stated chance of a historic El Niño

The discussion said chances remain high for a historic event, one that would exceed the strength of previous El Niño events dating back to 1950. It defined that as a 3-month value of +2.5°C or more on the Relative Oceanic Niño Index and gave the chance for three overlapping periods.

The center added that with an event of this size the chances of experiencing impacts consistent with El Niño are larger, though not guaranteed.

What an advisory means

An El Niño or La Niña Advisory is issued when El Niño or La Niña conditions are observed and expected to continue, according to the center's description of its alert system. A Watch is issued when conditions are favorable for El Niño or La Niña to develop within the next six months, and a Final Advisory is issued after the conditions have ended.

The same page says La Niña conditions exist when a one-month negative relative sea surface temperature anomaly of -0.5°C or less is observed in the Niño-3.4 region of the equatorial Pacific Ocean, the 3-month index threshold is expected to be met, and an atmospheric response typically associated with La Niña is observed over the equatorial Pacific. El Niño conditions use the mirror image of that test, with a positive anomaly of 0.5°C or greater.

When the next update is due

The October discussion said the next one is scheduled for November 12, 2026. When this page was last checked, early on November 12, the center's page still showed the October 8 discussion. This page will be updated at this address when the new discussion is published.

The 2026 Atlantic hurricane season has had 1 hurricane so far, according to the National Hurricane Center's 2026 Atlantic season summary, which is dated 03 UTC on November 12, 2026. The eastern Pacific has had 10 hurricanes over the same period, the center's 2026 eastern Pacific summary shows.

The 2026 count by basin

The National Hurricane Center keeps a separate count for each basin. These are the totals on its Atlantic, eastern Pacific and central Pacific pages, each dated 03 UTC on November 12, 2026.

The three rows cannot be added into one total, because a storm that crosses from the eastern Pacific into the central Pacific appears in both tables. The central Pacific table lists Fausto, Karina, Lowell, Norbert and Nolo with their eastern Pacific storm numbers.

The same pages count 10 named storms in the Atlantic, 20 in the eastern Pacific and 8 in the central Pacific.

The one Atlantic hurricane

Isaias is the only Atlantic storm of 2026 to reach hurricane strength, according to the Atlantic summary table. The table classes it as a major hurricane, with dates from October 6 to October 10, maximum winds of 105 knots and a minimum pressure of 959 millibars.

The other 9 named storms in the Atlantic stayed below hurricane strength. Arthur, Bertha, Cristobal, Dolly, Edouard, Fay, Gonzalo and Hanna were tropical storms, and Josephine was a subtropical storm, the same table shows. The strongest of them was Fay, at 60 knots.

The Atlantic summary puts the season at 5 hurricanes below the 1991 to 2020 normal and 3 named storms below it, as of its November 12 date. It also gives the season's accumulated cyclone energy, a measure of total storm strength and duration, as 19.9, which it says is 83% below normal.

The eastern Pacific hurricanes

The eastern Pacific summary counts 10 hurricanes and 8 major hurricanes, which it puts at 2 hurricanes and 4 major hurricanes above the 1991 to 2020 normal. These are the storms its table classes as a hurricane or major hurricane with a peak inside the basin.

Fausto and Marie are classed as hurricanes and the other 8 as major hurricanes. Polo was the strongest, with a minimum pressure of 892 millibars.

The table also lists Lowell and Nolo as major hurricanes, with a mark that means their peak intensity was reached outside the eastern Pacific. Both appear in the central Pacific count below.

The central Pacific hurricanes

The central Pacific summary counts 8 named storms, 5 hurricanes and 3 major hurricanes, which it puts at 4 hurricanes above the 1991 to 2020 normal. Its table classes Lala at 115 knots, Lowell at 140 knots and Nolo at 135 knots as major hurricanes that peaked in the basin.

Fausto and Karina are listed there as hurricanes whose peak intensity was reached outside the central Pacific. The table numbers four storms as central Pacific storms, Lala, Moke, Olana and Pena, and Lala is the only one of the four it classes as a hurricane.

What counts as a hurricane

A hurricane is a tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds of 74 mph, or 64 knots, or higher, according to the National Hurricane Center's climatology page. A major hurricane has winds of 111 mph, or 96 knots, or higher, which is Category 3, 4 or 5 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.

An average Atlantic season has 14 named storms, 7 hurricanes and 3 major hurricanes, based on the years 1991 to 2020, the same page says. An average eastern Pacific season has 15 named storms, 8 hurricanes and 4 major hurricanes.

Can the count still change?

Yes. The Atlantic and eastern Pacific seasons both run to November 30, according to the climatology page, so a storm could still form or strengthen. When does hurricane season end? covers the season dates for each basin, and Are there any hurricanes right now? lists the storms being tracked at the moment.

The figures for most storms are also not final. Each season page carries a report status column, and the Atlantic page marks only Arthur, Bertha and Cristobal as "Final". The center's Tropical Cyclone Reports contain the post-analysis record of each storm's positions and intensities, the page says, and the reports for the other storms were not yet marked final.

Hurricane season ends on November 30. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30 each year, according to the National Hurricane Center, and the eastern Pacific season ends on the same date. The Central Pacific Hurricane Center gives November 30 as the end of the hurricane season in the Pacific. In 2026, November 30 falls on a Monday.

Season dates by basin

The National Hurricane Center gives the Atlantic and eastern Pacific dates on its climatology page. The Central Pacific Hurricane Center gives the dates for the hurricane season in the Pacific on its About page.

The Atlantic basin includes the Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of America, the National Hurricane Center said. The eastern Pacific basin extends from Mexico and Central America westward to 140 degrees west longitude. The Central Pacific Hurricane Center covers the area from 140 degrees west longitude to the International Date Line.

Can a storm form after November 30?

Yes. The end date is the official end of the season, not a guarantee that storms stop. The National Hurricane Center's climatology page says: "The official hurricane season for the Atlantic basin is from June 1 to November 30, but tropical cyclone activity sometimes occurs before and after these dates, respectively." The same page says tropical cyclones in the eastern Pacific occasionally occur before and after that basin's official dates.

The Central Pacific Hurricane Center said that "tropical cyclones can and do occur year round."

For the storms being tracked at the moment, see Are there any hurricanes right now?

When the season peaks

The peak of the Atlantic hurricane season is September 10, and most activity occurs between mid-August and mid-October, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The eastern Pacific has a peak in late August that is less pronounced than the Atlantic peak, the same page says, and most tropical cyclones there occur between late June and early October.

What an average season looks like

Based on the 30 years from 1991 to 2020, an average Atlantic hurricane season has 14 named storms, 7 hurricanes and 3 major hurricanes, the National Hurricane Center said. An average eastern Pacific season has 15 named storms, 8 hurricanes and 4 major hurricanes over the same period.

A hurricane is a tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds of 74 mph or higher, and a major hurricane has winds of 111 mph or higher, which is Category 3, 4 or 5 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, according to the same page.

In the National Hurricane Center's table of an average Atlantic season, the 14th named storm has normally formed by November 19 and the 7th hurricane by November 15. The center notes that formation dates in individual seasons could vary considerably from these averages.

The key facts at the top say how many storms the National Hurricane Center was tracking when this page last read its list, and whether any of them was a hurricane. The table lists each storm with its basin, its maximum sustained wind and its minimum central pressure from its latest advisory.

Where to find the forecast

This page lists storms; it does not forecast them. The National Hurricane Center's home page links each active storm to its public advisory, forecast track and any watches and warnings.

When it updates

This page reads the National Hurricane Center's list of active storms every few hours and updates at the same address, with the time of each reading in the key facts. A storm can form, strengthen or weaken between readings, so for a decision about safety, use the advisory itself.

The key facts at the top count the earthquakes in or near California that the U.S. Geological Survey listed in the past 24 hours, of any size, and name the largest. The table lists up to 20 of them, largest first, with the place and the time in Eastern time.

What counts as California here

An earthquake is counted when the place USGS names for it is in California, as in "26 km SW of Gustine, CA". So an earthquake offshore or near a state line is included when the place USGS names is in California, and left out when the place USGS names is in another state or country.

When it updates

USGS updates its list of the past day's earthquakes every minute. This page reads that list every few hours and updates at the same address. For larger earthquakes anywhere in the world, see Was there an earthquake today?

The key facts at the top count the earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or greater that the U.S. Geological Survey listed in the past 24 hours and name the largest. The table lists up to 20 of them, largest first, with the place and the time in Eastern time.

Reading the list

USGS gives most locations as a distance and direction from a named place, so "26 km SW of" a town means the earthquake was about 26 kilometers southwest of it. Some locations are given only by region, such as an island group. The time is when the earthquake happened, converted to Eastern time.

When it updates

USGS updates its list of the past day's earthquakes every minute. This page reads that list every few hours and updates at the same address, with the time of the list shown in the key facts. For a California-only list that includes smaller earthquakes, see Was there an earthquake in California today?

The table lists the coming primary phases of the moon, in order, from the U.S. Naval Observatory: new moon, first quarter, full moon and last quarter. The key facts at the top give the next full moon in a sentence.

Reading the times

The Naval Observatory gives the date and time of each phase in Universal Time. This page also shows each time in Eastern time. Because of the conversion, a phase early in the day in Universal Time can fall on the previous evening in the United States, and the Eastern column shows that date.

When it updates

The Naval Observatory computes these times in advance. This page reads them every few hours and updates at the same address, so the table always starts from the next phase.

The Geminid meteor shower is active from December 4 to December 17, 2026, and peaks on December 13 to 14, according to NASA. The American Meteor Society, which NASA lists as a source for its dates, gives the same active period and lists December 13 to 14 as the peak night.

Geminid dates for 2026

The dates come from the fast facts on NASA's Geminids page. NASA says the Geminids peak during mid-December each year.

How many meteors to expect

NASA says to expect 40 to 50 meteors per hour under dark skies. The same page says that during the peak, 120 Geminid meteors can be seen per hour under perfect conditions. NASA describes Geminid meteors as bright and fast, tending to be yellow in color, with a velocity of 22 miles (35 kilometers) per second.

Best time and way to watch

The Geminids are best viewed during the night and predawn hours, and they are visible across the globe, NASA says. The shower starts around 9 or 10 p.m., which is why NASA says it is considered one of the best opportunities for young viewers, and it lasts until dawn.

NASA's viewing advice on that page:

• Find an area well away from city lights and street lights.
• Dress for winter temperatures and bring a sleeping bag, blanket or lawn chair.
• Lie flat on your back with your feet facing south and look up, taking in as much of the sky as possible.
• Allow about 30 minutes in the dark for your eyes to adapt.

The meteors appear to come from the constellation Gemini, which gives the shower its name, but NASA says viewers should not look only toward Gemini because Geminids are visible throughout the night sky.

Where the Geminids come from

Most meteor showers originate from comets. The Geminids originate from an asteroid, 3200 Phaethon, NASA says. Phaethon takes 1.4 years to orbit the Sun once and measures 3.17 miles (5.10 kilometers) across. It was discovered on October 11, 1983, by the Infrared Astronomical Satellite, and NASA credits the astronomer Fred Whipple with realizing that it is the source of the Geminid meteors.

NASA says scientists are not certain how to define Phaethon. The agency says it may be a "dead comet" or a new kind of object that astronomers call a "rock comet."

According to NASA, the Geminids first began appearing in the mid-1800s, when only 10 to 20 meteors were seen per hour, and have since grown into one of the major meteor showers of the year.

This page will be updated at this address when the dates for the next Geminid shower are posted.

The Leonid meteor shower is active from November 6 to November 30, 2026, and its peak night is November 16 to 17, according to NASA's Leonids page. NASA says the Leonids peak during mid-November each year.

Leonid dates for 2026

The active dates and the peak night come from the fast facts on NASA's Leonids page. The best viewing times come from NASA's November 2026 skywatching guide, which recommends watching after the Moon sets.

How many meteors to expect

The skywatching guide says that under ideal conditions the shower could produce around 15 meteors per hour, though most viewers will see fewer. The fast facts on the Leonids page list fewer than 3 meteors per hour as the rate observed under dark skies, and the same page says rates are often as low as about three meteors per hour.

The Leonids page describes the meteors as bright and sometimes colorful. It lists their velocity as 43.5 miles (69.7 kilometers) per second and says they are considered to be some of the fastest meteors.

How to watch the Leonids

The Leonids page gives these directions:

• Start at about midnight local time. The show lasts until dawn.
• Find an area well away from city or street lights.
• Prepare for winter temperatures with a sleeping bag, blanket or lawn chair.
• Lie flat on your back with your feet toward the east and look up, taking in as much of the sky as possible.
• Allow time in the dark. NASA says eyes adapt in less than 30 minutes.

NASA lists the constellation Leo as the shower's radiant. NASA says viewers should not look only toward Leo, because the Leonids are visible across the night sky and appear longer away from the radiant.

Where the Leonids come from

The debris that creates the Leonids originates from comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, according to the Leonids page. The comet takes 33 years to orbit the Sun once, and its nucleus measures about 2.24 miles (3.6 kilometers) across. It was discovered twice independently, in 1865 by Ernst Tempel and in 1866 by Horace Tuttle.

Leonid meteor storms

A meteor storm is defined as having at least 1,000 meteors per hour, according to the Leonids page. The page says that about every 33 years, viewers on Earth may experience a Leonid storm that can peak with hundreds to thousands of meteors seen per hour, depending on the observer's location. In 1966, thousands of meteors per minute fell through Earth's atmosphere during a 15-minute period. The last Leonid meteor storm took place in 2002.

This page will be updated at this address when NASA posts the dates for the next Leonid shower.