How a year of extreme weather and a ‘Super El Niño’ will affect fall foliage

Leaf-peeping season is swinging into high gear. Yet after months of record-shattering extreme heat, wildfires and perhaps the strongest El Niño in living memory, will fall foliage also fall victim to the weather?

The good news, experts say, is leaves always change color in some way because of seasonal shifts in sunlight. But extreme weather conditions, such as droughts, heavy rainfall or heat, can affect the timeline of the color change—and scientists are still trying to understand exactly how and why.