The ATLANTIC 2024 hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30.
With Category 4 Hurricane Beryl now sweeping the Windward Islands, people want to know more about these intense tropical storms and how they are named.
How do hurricanes get their names?
According to CBS NewsO World Meteorological Organization (WMO) maintains six alphabetical lists of names for Atlantic hurricanes that are “rotated every six years.”
According to the outlet, a developing cyclone gets a name when it officially becomes a tropical storm, meaning it has sustained winds of at least 39 mph.
A tropical storm becomes a hurricane when maximum sustained winds reach 74 mph.
According to the WMO, storms received female names from the mid-20th century onwards.
He continues: “So, in the search for a more organized and efficient system, North Atlantic meteorologists decided to identify storms using names from an alphabetical list: the first storm of the year would be given a name that begins with A, like Anne, the second B, like Betty, etc.”
The National Hurricane Center, a division of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), provided lists of names for Atlantic tropical storms starting in 1953. Male names joined in 1979 and alternated with female names.
The WMO has now created “rigorous procedures for determining a list of tropical cyclone names.”
Different areas of the world have varying procedures for naming cyclones.
“In some places like the Atlantic and the Southern Hemisphere, cyclones are named alphabetically, alternating male and female names. In other regions, the names follow the alphabetical order of the countries”, states the WMO.
Why are hurricanes named?
According to CBS News, the nomenclature helps meteorologists and the public track storms.
Meteorologists began following an alphabetical system, with the first hurricane of the season given an “A” name, the second a “B” name, and so on.
According to the WMO, naming tropical cyclones “has proven to be the quickest way to communicate warnings and increase public awareness and preparedness.”
Naming tropical cyclones “makes tracking and discussing specific storms simpler, especially when multiple storms are active simultaneously.”
It also “helps avoid confusion among meteorologists, media outlets, emergency management agencies and the public.”
Naming tropical cyclones can also help with historical record keeping as well as research into storm behavior and impacts, according to the WMO.
What is the difference between a tropical storm and a hurricane?
Hurricanes are more severe than tropical storms.
two
According to National Weather Servicea tropical storm is a tropical cyclone “that has maximum sustained surface winds ranging from 39 to 73 mph (34 to 63 knots)”, while a hurricane is “a tropical cyclone that has maximum sustained surface winds of 74 mph or more ( 64 knots or more).”
Why were hurricane names removed?
According to National Hurricane Center (NHC), the only time there is a name change is if a storm “is so deadly or costly that future use of its name in a different storm would be inappropriate for obvious sensitivity reasons.”
If this happens, the offending name is removed from the list and another name is chosen as its replacement at the committee’s annual meeting.
However, there were exceptions to this system. Before the first permanent six-year list of storm names began in 1979, “some storm names were simply no longer used.”
According to the NHC, in 1966, the name “Fern” was replaced by “Frieda” for no reason given.
According to CBS News, during especially severe hurricane seasons, several names per year may be retired.
What names are being used in 2024?
According to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the names of the 2024 Atlantic tropical cyclones include:
- Alberto
- Beryl
- Chris
- Debbie
- Ernesto
- Francine
- Gordon
- Helena
- Isaac
- Joyce
- Kirk
- Leslie
- Milton
- Nadine
- Oscar
- Patty
- Rafael
- Sara
- Tony
- Valeria
- William
As CNN reported, Hurricane Beryl became a Category 4 storm on the morning of July 1, 2024.
As the storm passes through the Windward Islands, it is
“putting several island communities at risk with potentially fatal storms, violent winds and flash floods,” according to the outlet.
It is the strongest storm in the Windward Islands in 20 years and has so far impacted areas including Barbados, Grenada and Trinidad and Tobago.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
