When is hurricane season?Donna L. Long

Hurricanes Maria and Jose in the Caribbean - Photo by Nasa.gov. — Hurricanes Maria and Jose in the Caribbean – Photo by Nasa.gov.

When is Hurricane Season?

In the Northern hemisphere, hurricane season lasts from June through November. Most storms happen two months after the summer solstice, in late summer through early autumn, with August and September being the most active months. The average number of storms throughout the world during a season is 85.

What are Hurricanes?

Hurricanes are powerful violent storms, with high gusting winds and heavy rain. They range in strength from weak to devastating. Winds can range from 74 to over 156 miles per hour. Sea levels can rise from four to over nineteen feet high. Damage can range from uprooted damaged trees and shrubbery to destroyed buildings. Storms can last 3 to 14 days. The long-lived storms can move over an extensive area ranging from 3,000 to 4,000 miles. Storms can move at speeds of 5 to 20 miles per hour. The scale which categorizes storm strength and intensity the Saffir-Simpson Scale.

Storms form over warm waters, near the equator and move toward the poles. For a storm to form, the upper layer of the ocean water’s temperature must be more than 80°F (27°C). There also has to be uniform wind speed, so the storm can stay intact and not blow apart.

Storms in the Northern Hemisphere travel from east to west. As the storm approaches the North American continent, they shift to a more northerly direction and often travel along the coasts. The path of a storm is difficult to predict. Storms need heat and energy from warm waters and often die quickly when moving over land. Therefore, there aren’t hurricanes far inland.

Tropical storms develop when the winds exceed 38 miles per hour. When the winds surpass 74 miles per hour, a tropical storm is called a hurricane.

The National Hurricane Service of the National Weather Service (in the United States) issues storm watches and warnings when appropriate.

Where Do Hurricane Names Come From?

Storms are have different names depending where they occur. They are called hurricanes when they occur in the North Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico, or the Northeast Pacific Ocean. These violent storms are called typhoons when they occur in the Northwest Pacific Ocean. And tropical cyclones when they occur in the Indian Ocean and near Australia.

Where Can We Find Storm Names?

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) issues four alphabetical lists of names, one for each of the four major storm regions. We can find a list of storm names on their website.

One list is for the North Atlantic Ocean, and the Caribbean Sea. There is one list each for Eastern, Central and the Northwestern Pacific Ocean. We name each tropical storm to help meteorologists communicate effectively about storms. Having a set list of names helps them to pinpoint where a storm occurred, its strength and what year it occurred.

The list of names includes both male and female names popular in the countries affected by the storms. In the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean, the first storm of the year is given a name beginning with the letter A. For the year 2012, the first name is Alberto. If the first storm meets the criteria for a tropical storm it’s named “Tropical Storm Alberto”. If it gathers power, it’s referred to as “Hurricane Alberto”.