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In this GOES-16 Geocolor satellite image from Thursday, September 7, 2017, the eye of Hurricane Irma (center) is north of the island of Hispaniola, while Hurricane Katia (left) is in the Gulf of Mexico and Hurricane Jose, right, is in the Atlantic Ocean. (NOAA via AP) |
The 2024 Atlantic hurricane season is expected to be one of the most active on record. AccuWeather experts are predicting 20 to 25 named storms in 2024. Because so many storms are expected this year, a variety of names are being used, including some that have never been used before.
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has been naming tropical systems since 1953, using a rotating list to identify storms. If a tropical storm or hurricane causes extensive damage or significant loss of life, the name is retired.
The list contains 21 names, although the alphabet contains 26 letters as Q, U, X, Y and Z are skipped. With a violent hurricane season predicted, it’s possible that every name on the list will be used in 2024 – and more.
Atlantic hurricane season officially begins on Saturday, June 1st.
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Some of these names may sound familiar, as many of them are recycled every six years. The last time Alberto, Beryl, Chris, Debby, Ernesto, Gordon, Helene, Isaac, Joyce, Kirk, Leslie, Nadine and Oscar were deployed was during the 2018 Atlantic hurricane season. Francine and Milton are new names, replacing Florence and Michael, who retired after the 2018 season.
Tropical systems that form in the eastern Pacific hurricane basin are also given names, but the NHC uses a different list to identify each storm.
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When a tropical system develops over the central Pacific, it is given a name from a separate list of traditional Hawaiian names.
Since the 2024 Atlantic basin forecast includes 20 to 25 named tropical systems, it is likely that meteorologists will need more than 21 names before the season ends.
The letters of the Greek alphabet were previously used as names, starting with Alpha. However, this rule was changed in 2021 after a historic hurricane season in 2020.
“It was not expected that use of the Greek alphabet would be common enough to warrant a change to the existing naming procedure,” the WMO said on its website. “However, after the record-breaking 2020 season, the 2021 Annual Meeting of the Hurricane Committee of the WMO Regional Association IV decided to stop using the Greek alphabet and instead created two lists of additional tropical cyclone names, one for the Atlantic, one for the Pacific.”
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The supplementary list of names is also arranged alphabetically and begins with the name Adria.
If there are at least 22 named storms in the Atlantic this season, the supplemental list will be used for the first time in 2024.
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